Global ministry roiled by its late founder’s sexual misconduct scandal
NEW YORK >> A posthumous sexual misconduct scandal involving the man who founded, in his own name, Ravi Zacharias International Ministries has placed the global Christian organization in a wrenching predicament. It faces calls from within its own ranks to change its name, pay reparations to any victims and oust some top leaders, including Zacharias family members.
Zacharias, a widely popular author and speaker, died of cancer in May at age 74. One measure of his stature in Christian circles: Vice President Mike Pence spoke at his memorial service, lauding him as a great evangelist “armed with intellect, girded with truth and love.”
Zacharias founded his international ministr y, known as RZIM, in 1984, with a mission to engage in “Christian apologetics” — defending Christianity with powerful intellectual arguments. Based in suburban Atlanta, RZIM has operations in about 20 countries and a roster of scores of traveling speakers.
In recent months, the organization has been plunged into crisis, precipitated by a Sept. 29 article in the evangelical publication Christianity Today asserting that over a period of about five years, Zacharias sexually harassed three women who worked as massage therapists at two day spas he coowned in an Atlanta suburb.
RZIM’s leadership initially challenged the claims, asserting that the allega
tions “do not in any way comport with the man we knew for decades — we believe them to be false.”
However, RZIM hired an Atlanta law firm, Miller & Martin, in October to conduct an independent investigation. Completion of the report, and its promised public release, is still weeks away. But on Dec. 22 the law firm submitted a dramatic “interim update “to RZIM’s executive committee, which made it public the next day.
The law firm summarized its investigation, which included dozens of interviews, as well as review of documents and electronic data. In the process, the firm said, “We have found significant, credible evidence that Mr. Zacharias engaged in sexual misconduct over the course of many years.”
“Some of that misconduct is consistent with and corroborative of that which is reported in the news recently, and some of the conduct we have uncovered is more serious,” it added. “Our investigation is ongoing, and we continue to pursue leads.”
In disclosing the interim findings, the RZIM executive committee members described themselves as heartbroken and expressed remorse on behalf of those victimized by Zacharias.
The disclosures already have had tangible impact. Several radio outlets, including Moody Radio — one of the largest Christian networks in the U. S. — have dropped RZIM programs. Some booksellers have pulled Zacharias’ books from their offerings. In Britain, a network of student-led mission teams operating on university campuses has asked RZIM-affiliated speakers to withdraw from upcoming events.
There has been heavy pressure on RZIM from its British affiliate, the Zacharias Trust. In a letter to its staff on Dec. 23, the trust’s board members said they were urging the U. S. leadership to issue a “profound apology” to any victims and commit to “reform radically the governance, leadership and accountability of the RZIM organization.”