(ChurchLeaders) Dr. Burnett Robinson, who suggested in a sermon that husbands are permitted to rape their wives, has resigned, according to a statement sent to ChurchLeaders from the Greater New York Conference of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. The statement reads:
Pastor Burnett Robinson has resigned as the Senior Pastor of the Grand Concourse Seventh-day Adventist Church. The Greater New York Conference of Seventh-day Adventists recognizes many have been deeply harmed by the sentiments expressed by Robinson. The views he expressed are wrong and not accepted by our church. Rape and sexual assault of women are crimes and should always be treated as such. We will continue to educate and counsel all pastors, seminary students, and staff to fully understand that this type of rhetoric is abhorrent and unequivocally unacceptable. We will continue to pray for and seek to become stronger advocates on behalf of survivors and those still living with violence and abuse. The Seventh-day Adventist Church condemns any language or behavior that perpetrates or encourages any type of violence against women. We humbly apologize and ask for forgiveness.
Moreover, Religion News Service reports that the North American Division of the Seventh-day Adventist Church has also issued a statement, saying, “We wholeheartedly condemn any form of behavior or rhetoric that perpetrates any type of violence against women — or any person. This is not what the Seventh-day Adventist Church believes.”