SBC abuse whistleblower Jennifer Lyell dies

The author and former executive at the Southern Baptist Convention’s Lifeway Christian Resources died Saturday. She was 47 years old. Lyell suffered a series of strokes early last week and was found unconscious Thursday, her friend Rachael Denhollander wrote on social media. She became a Christian at age 20 at a Billy Graham crusade after she quit an unfulfilling, high-paying job and became homeless, according to a profile by the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. She later earned a master of divinity degree at the university and became a vice president at Lifeway. At the time of writing Monday morning, Lyell’s family and friends had not released details about her funeral or memorial services.

What were Lyell’s claims about abuse in the SBC? Lyell in 2018 informed her bosses at Lifeway of an abusive situation. She alleged that one of her seminary professors, David Sills, had used force and spiritual influence to coerce her into nonconsensual sexual interactions over a decade. Sills, who was also president of Reaching & Teaching International Ministries, admitted to misconduct and resigned from his positions. The details of the allegations were not made public.

Lyell in 2019 went public in a Baptist Press article with her allegations after Sills joined the staff of a different ministry. Lyell received criticism after the report and ultimately left her job at Lifeway. The stress of the ordeal weighed heavily on Lyell, said her friend and fellow abuse survivor Rachael Denhollander. The SBC news outlet later retracted the story and apologized after determining that the article misrepresented Lyell’s claims by framing her alleged abuse as only a morally inappropriate relationship.

What else has happened since the allegations? The Executive Committee of the Southern Baptist Convention in early 2022 formally apologized to Lyell for failing to believe her and protect her. An investigative report released later that year confirmed claims of abuse made by dozens of victims against leaders in the SBC. In November of 2022, the former professor Sills sued Lyell and SBC leaders claiming defamation, conspiracy, negligence, and untrue claims of sexual abuse. The case was scheduled to go to trial early next year.

Dig deeper: Read Mary Jackson’s report from 2022 about the SBC making amends with abuse survivors.