N.C. Rev. Bobby Leonard, at Bible Baptist Tabernacle Church on Walkup Avenue in Monroe, who had served as a pastor for a decade, apologized after facing backlash for comments he made during a sermon about sexual assault victims.
The pastor in a sermon last summer had made objectionable comments linking women who have been the target of sexual assault to how they dress.
The clip of the sermon delivered by Bobby Leonard of Bible Baptist Tabernacle was shared on X by Bad Preacher Clips.
The group regularly posts clips of sermons shared primarily by preachers leading independent fundamental Baptist congregations.
Leonard said during the summer sermon,
“You will find more women in those places with shorts than you will women with pants and dresses put together. If you dress like that and you get raped, and I’m on the jury, he’s going to go free … because you know, a man is a man. A man is a man.”
The comment drew sharp criticism, with many deriding the pastor’s comments as chauvinist and objectionable.
Jason King, who has taught Sunday School at various churches in the area, in a scathing reply said that rape is wrong, and it is inconsequential if a woman is walking around in any attire, and even if she is nude, it is a man’s choice whether he does it right or wrong.
Pastor Bobby Leonard Makes Public Apology for Sermon’s Content
There was a message on the church sign Thursday night.
It was Leonard apologizing
“I am sorry for any hurt,”
“I was wrong.”
it read.
Post the apology from Bobby Leonard, King said that it is a good sign and people were awaiting something of this sort. However, most people were disappointed that the church did not take cognizance of the matter for so long.
The video is from August 2023, which showed Pastor Bobby Leonard in the pulpit at Bible Baptist Tabernacle commenting that a woman who wears short dresses welcomes sexual assault.
The video, which had 3 million views online, evoked a harsh reaction, which culminated with the pastor apologizing.
Leonard started Bible Baptist Tabernacle 40 years ago.
When reporters contacted Bible Baptist Tabernacle on Thursday afternoon to get the pastor’s account of the story, his staff said that he was declining all interviews and that the Church would issue a written statement, something which never happened.
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