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For decades, Tiffany Thigpen carried the weight of what happened to her as a teenage girl in a Jacksonville church. A charismatic preacher. A trusted pastor. And a pattern of abuse that powerful leaders chose to ignore.

This podcast episode is hosted by Carolyn McCulley and features an interview with journalist Robert Downen about the historical context of the Southern Baptist Convention. At the end, therapist Deborah Bumbaugh helps listeners understand Tiffany's story through the neurobiology of trauma.

Our executive producer is Rachael Berglund.

• The Silenced Truth is a project of the Safe to Speak Initiative.
• Join our Patreon community to advocate for the legal protections that survivors need to safely disclose their experiences.
• To support the production of this show, you can make a tax-deductible gift to the Southern Documentary Fund.

FOR FURTHER CONTEXT

PBS Newshour on the Abuse of Faith series, February 11, 2019

WFAA-TV report on Paige Patterson’s firing from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, May 30, 2018

Paige Patterson recording from the 2000 CBMW/FamilyLife Today conference

Paige Patterson talks about a 16-year-old girl’s figure

Pastor Cited in SBC Report on Abuse Worked at Churches in Oak Cliff, Garland, Richardson, Dallas Morning News, May 23, 2022

Unearthed Tapes, Letters, Show Southern Baptist Leaders’ Support for Pastor Who Face Sex Scandal, by Rob Downen, Houston Chronicle, Aug. 28, 2019

How Women Led to the Dramatic Rise and Fall of Southern Baptist Leader Paige Patterson, by Michelle Boorstein and Sarah Pulliam Bailey, The Washington Post, June 10, 2018

Former Rising Star Preacher Pleads Guilty to Molestation, by Bob Allen, Associated Baptist Press, May 21, 2009

Jacksonville Pastor Begins Prison Sentence, by Paul Pinkham, The Florida Times-Union, June 11, 2009.

The Silenced Truth is a project of the Safe to Speak Initiative and is a production of Citygate Communications. It is fiscally sponsored by the Southern Documentary Fund.