Did you know there are individuals in our churches who seek to destroy pastors?
There is a term for such people: “clergy killers.”
I first heard the phrase used by Dr. Lloyd Rediger in an article promoting his book Clergy Killers which was published in the late 1990s.
The late Dr. Rediger was an ordained Presbyterian minister, a pastoral counselor, a church consultant, and the author of books on clergy burnout and toxic congregations, among others.
In 2011, when I learned that Dr. Rediger lived in the Southwest, I contacted him about the possibility of meeting someday. However, he told me he couldn’t meet because he was busy working on a film about the clergy killer phenomenon.
The film has now been released, and it’s called Betrayed: The Clergy Killer’s DNA.
My wife and I recently viewed the 90-minute film in its entirety … hitting the pause button along the way to discuss what we had just heard. (I can be annoying that way.)
The film features unscripted interviews with pastors, psychiatrists, and Christian leaders who seek to expose what they say has been “the best kept secret in the Church.”
And these leaders hail from evangelical, mainline, and Roman Catholic congregations.
Those who are interviewed discuss the motivations of those who attack clergy … our need to label this kind of behavior as “evil” … the viciousness of the attacks … the role of Satan and spiritual warfare … and the heavy cost that clergy killers exact on pastors, their families, and congregations.
In fact, clergy killers consider themselves to be on a mission: to destroy a pastor at all costs … regardless of how much the CK hurts others.
The film not only exposes people who attempt to harm their pastors, but also indicts churchgoers who allow this “emotional terrorism” to happen without doing anything.
I encourage you to order this film and watch it with other believers. It’s one of the best things you can do to keep your church healthy … and to protect your pastor from unwarranted attacks.
In fact, if you’re in a small group, I encourage you to show the film sometime and discuss it afterwards.
You can order the film from the following website (and they’ll send it right out):
http://www.betrayedthemovie.com
It’s one of the best moves you can make to protect your pastor … and your church … from clergy killers.
Check out our website at www.restoringkingdombuilders.org You’ll find Jim’s story, recommended resources on conflict, and a forum where you can ask questions about conflict situations in your church.
Restoring Kingdom Builders 
I purchased and viewed “Betrayed.” It had some very good points. However, I think it could have been edited down and included more actual personal stories –the actual description of the circumstances a pastor experienced. The UMC pastor shared one–about a clergy killer demolishing a swing/play set the pastor had built in the parsonage back yard, and having to try to explain this to his five year old child. These anecdotes would greatly help the documentary. I can see lay people watching this and not clearly understanding the phenomenon because of the lack of tangible illustrations of a pastor’s experience with a clergy killer. Also–I think there are persons with conditions like Borderline Personality disorder or other mental disorders who are not only pawns but are themselves clergy killers. The film seemed to dismiss this as a legitimate possibility.
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Roy,
Thanks for writing! I appreciate your viewpoint. I was thrilled with the documentary because it made visible a problem in the church that has been invisible for too long. I read Lloyd Rediger’s book Clergy Killers right after it came out in the late 1990s and was happy that he was able to get the documentary produced before his death last March. In his book, he does acknowledge the existence of killer clergy, but clergy killers far outnumber killer clergy. Killer clergy are usually terminated, while clergy killers are often tolerated.
If you would like to read more on this topic, check out this blog article I wrote a few months ago on clergy killers: https://blog.restoringkingdombuilders.org/2013/02/01/profile-of-a-clergy-killer/ The next blog continues my experience with clergy killers as well.
In 36 years of church ministry, I have met 15 clergy killers in the churches I have served. They didn’t just disagree with the pastor … they wanted to destroy the pastor.
If you’d like to read some real-life illustrations of this phenomenon, you might pick up my book Church Coup. I detail a 50-day conflict in a church I served as pastor for more than ten years. You can buy the book from my website at http://www.restoringkingdombuilders.org or from Amazon, where it’s also in e-book form. Believe me, this phenomenon is increasing in our day as church boards utilize the business model and ignore Scripture.
Jim
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I just wanted to let someone know I ordered this back on Oct 2 and never received it and cannot make contact with US Films, so I encourage folks to be cautious! Maybe someone at that firm will read this and contact me.
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Leigh,
I bought my DVD probably 15 months ago. I don’t have any connection with the organization that produced the DVD, so you’ll have to be persistent in finding out what’s going on. Lloyd Rediger was the driving force behind the DVD, and he died earlier this year, so I don’t know if that has anything to do with it or not. My little article on the DVD has done very well, so I know there’s great interest out there on the topic. Please let me know if you receive your copy by the end of the year. If you don’t, write me back and I’ll let people know about your issue. Thanks for writing!
Jim
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Leigh: DId you ever get your copy of the film?
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Yes, thank you, and thanks for the phone call. Will share this with others.
Blessings.
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