Eternal Church fires pastor convicted of sexual misconduct with 14-year-old 27 years ago

By Leonardo Blair, Senior Reporter Thursday, July 18, 2024

The nondenominational Eternal Church in Fort Mill, South Carolina, has fired longtime Pastor Donald Logan after it was revealed that he is a registered sex offender convicted of sexual misconduct with a 14-year-old girl 27 years ago.

While some church leaders knew of Logan's past, the congregation was not informed until it was disclosed in the media.

"Effective immediately, we have made the decision to release Pastor Don Logan from his call as Pastor of Eternal Church," reads an email church elders sent to the congregation on July 10, a copy of which was published by The Fort Mill Sun.

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"Our decision to release Don was made with much prayer and discernment around the biblical qualifications for overseers of the church," the letter continued, pointing to 1 Timothy 3:1-7. "Retaining Don as our pastor is not consistent with the truth, wisdom, and practicality in this text."

Logan was convicted of the Class C felony in Indiana in 1997, according to court records reviewed by The Christian Post. The teenage victim in the case told police she knew Logan because he used to be her minister. When he was 29, Logan fondled the 14-year-old under her pants while she sat on his lap and watched a movie at a friend's house.

Details on a plea deal Logan made with the court for his crime suggest he was ordered to spend three years in prison and another three on probation. He was also required to register as a sex offender on his release.

“Special conditions of probation are that the defendant make restitution to the victim and her family for the cost of counseling, that he relinquish his minister's license, that he have no contact with any minor without adult supervision, and his type of employment is approved by the Court and Probation Department,” court records read. 

According to The Fort Mill Sun, Logan only served Logan 18 months in prison and registered as a sex offender in South Carolina three months ago on the advice of his attorney, even though he had been the lead pastor at Eternal Church since 2015.

The Eternal church elders revealed that a few leaders were aware of Logan’s criminal past, but the voting members of the pastor selection committee that hired him in 2015 were not told.

“The Elders failed to see how Don’s conviction would adversely affect him, his family, the victim, members, attenders, and most importantly the church’s witness within the community by not bringing the conviction into the light years ago,” the elders stated in their letter, while asking the congregation for forgiveness.

“We recognize our congregation is in a real place of pain and hurt, and that for some, trust has been broken,” they added while noting that they believe their pastor has changed because of the Gospel.

“Despite the recent events and decisions, we continue to affirm the sufficiency of Jesus’ death and resurrection for the forgiveness of sin. We have the comfort and promise from the word of God in 1 John 1:9: ‘If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive our sin and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.’ We still believe Don experienced this transformational power of the gospel of Jesus Christ. We believe this for ourselves as well.”