Pastor Josiah Anthony engaged in sexual messaging with women, Cross Timbers Church reveals

By Leonardo Blair, Senior Reporter Monday, August 05, 2024

Days after claiming their former lead pastor resigned over “inappropriate and hurtful” behavior toward current and former staff that was not sexual, elders of Cross Timbers Church in Argyle, Texas, said they discovered that Josiah Anthony engaged in behavior that was sexual in nature and are bracing for more allegations to come.

“After announcing Josiah’s resignation to our congregation, we then learned about additional inappropriate comments he made in text messages and through social media that were sexual in nature,” the elders of the Texas megachurch said in a new statement to congregants published by survivor advocate, Amy Smith on Friday. 

“We want to be very clear; we do not consider any of these instances to be emotional affairs. Because the power dynamic of these interactions were never equal, we do not consider these to be consensual. This behavior will not be tolerated at our church.”

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In a statement read to the congregation two Sundays ago, John Chalk, the most senior member of the church’s elder board, said Anthony’s struggle with his emotional and mental health had caused him to engage in “inappropriate and hurtful” actions toward current and former staff at the church, but it never involved anything sexual even though those actions led to his resignation.

In the elder board's latest statement, they provide a more comprehensive accounting of the events that led to Anthony’s resignation.

“At the end of June, before Josiah entered his annual sabbatical, we received a concerning report of inappropriate communication on social media with a woman who is a former member of our church. This was taken very seriously by the elders, and we were grateful it was brought to our attention,” the elders said.

“Josiah has been open in his preaching about his mental health issues. And he suggested that his actions were a result of his struggles. However, upon further investigation, we discovered that Josiah was not forthcoming or transparent, and had a concerning pattern of behavior communicating inappropriately with women,” they added.

After learning about Anthony’s “inappropriate communication that was not sexual” but “excessively personal, and overtly familiar with a former staff member” on July 2, the elders said they asked him to resign. They later learned of his sexual communication.

“We may learn more in the coming days; we commit to take additional action, as necessary. This will be a continual process, but the elders, and staff are committed to having a culture of support and care for every current and former member of our church,” they said.

The elders also noted that Toby Slough, the church’s founding, and legacy pastor, will take over as interim lead pastor in light of the new development until a replacement for Anthony has been found.