The board of Cornerstone, an Assemblies of God church in Bloomington, Indiana, is standing behind its lead pastor who has been accused of arranging visits with sex workers on ministry trips.
Board member Gregory Lamar read a five-minute statement during Sept. 27 worship services calling the accusations against Lead Pastor David Wigington “false allegations.”
“We believe Pastor Dave,” Lamar said. “We believe in his innocence, and David and Shana have this board’s full confidence, love and support. We have walked closely with them throughout these past four months. We have watched David willingly submit himself to the accountability and cooperate with everything that has been asked of him.”
Regional leaders of the Assemblies of God have been investigating the matter for more than four months, Lamar told the congregation.
The process has “taken a significant personal and emotional toll” on the Wigingtons, he said. Thus, the board has asked them to take “vacation time away from Cornerstone to rest, to spend time together and begin to heal.”
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“We want to be very clear about what this means,” Lamar said. “This is not a suspension or discipline, and it does not represent any change in this board’s confidence in David. Quite the opposite. This is their board saying to them, ‘You have carried enough for a while. Let us carry some of this for you.’”
Cornerstone leaders will update the congregation when the Indiana District investigation concludes, Lamar said.
“Until then, we want there to be no uncertainty about where this board stands,” Lamar said. “We believe David. We stand with David and Shana. We love them with all our heart.”
Wigington denied the allegations in a Sept. 24 email to Roys Report (RR), calling them “malicious lies and fabrications.”
Former longtime Cornerstone congregant and volunteer Jo Fipps reported Wigington’s alleged behavior to the Indiana District in May after coming across troubling texts that appeared to come from the pastor.
The messages show the pastor setting up appointments with escorts and erotic massage parlors, often during times his schedule showed he was on ministry trips.
Fipps told RR he was confused by the board’s decision to declare the allegations false while simultaneously saying they are awaiting the results of the district’s investigation.
“If they were honestly looking to the district for guidance, they would not be declaring these allegations true or false at this point, because the district’s investigation is ongoing,” Fipps said. “I’m also wondering why they will make a statement to the entire church but not sit down for a single conversation with me, someone who attended for over a decade and was a college pastor working out of the church for seven years.”
Fipps initially reported the matter to Project Rescue, a nonprofit that exists to rescue people exploited by the sex industry. Wigington has served in a leadership role with Project Rescue since at least 2024.
Project Rescue, which did not provide comment on the matter to RR before time of publication, declined to investigate, Fipps said.
Fipps also contacted two other nonprofits tied to Wigington: Stone Table and Live Dead. They also declined to independently investigate, according to Fipps. Wigington serves on the board of both organizations.
Wigington and his wife, Shana, founded Cornerstone, an Assemblies of God church, in 1997.
Julie Roys will speak with whistleblower Jo Fipps in a YouTube live stream Monday at 8pm central.
Ann Marie Shambaugh has reported as a print journalist in multiple states, including currently in Carmel, Indiana.
9 Responses
This is absolutely wrong of the church board! What is happening in this world
How irresponsible. Trust and never verify.
It is foolishness and ends with far more harm and distrust. Victims swept under the rug in an attempt to save face. The big business of the modern church. The grift must go on.
Thank you for sharing. Please keep investigating.
How can you say “absolutely”?
Are you privy to the inner workings of the investigation?
Exploited sex workers take note – David Wigington is headed your way, on an all-expenses-paid vacation! Courtesy of Cornerstone, in case you’re wondering whom to thank.
It’s so horrifically true. This is like a total deja vu of Ravi Zacharias. Exploiting the very women in the countries he claimed to be defending or helping.
God bless Jo Fipps for speaking up and the Lord protect him from these sickos who refuse truth and accountability.
“ Fipps told RR he was confused by the board’s decision to declare the allegations false while simultaneously saying they are awaiting the results of the district’s investigation.”
There is never a shortage of people who know what the answer is and work backwards from it, long before they actually examine the evidence…if they do so at all.
My husband had this same issue and I discovered it a similar way. The language this pastor used in his emails and texts are EXACTLY what men who are engaged in this behavior talk like and the sex workers respond exactly like this. If you’d like more information on sites he may have frequented looking for the parlors and escorts I will happily share for your team to research etc. Also, to Jo, THANK YOU for doing this. It is so encouraging to see a man who will stick up for truth and the broken women this pastor used. I believe men are either protectors or predators- and we know you are a protector! Praise God for you!
I can’t find any news of this anywhere else.