Team of Apologists Determines 3 Former RZIM Leaders Are 'Not Fit to Be in Ministry'

Amanda Casanova | ChristianHeadlines.com Contributor | Updated: Nov 15, 2022
Team of Apologists Determines 3 Former RZIM Leaders Are 'Not Fit to Be in Ministry'

Team of Apologists Determines 3 Former RZIM Leaders Are 'Not Fit to Be in Ministry'

A team of Christian apologists has found that three former leaders of the Ravi Zacharias International Ministries organization are “not fit to be in ministry or leadership positions.”

Earlier this week, the apologists published a summary of their findings at RisenJesus.com. In the report, the team detailed several “types of abuse and deception that were representative of RZIM’s organizational culture.”

According to Christian Today, the team also said they will not partner with or endorse the work of Sarah (Davis) Phillips, Abdu Murray or Michael Ramsden “until the fruit consistent with genuine repentance is evident in their lives.”

“No apologetics governing body exists … we believe that we had both a spiritual and moral obligation to set up a committee to make an inquiry and follow the evidence wherever it led,” the report’s author, Michael Licona, wrote.

Licona was one of a team that included Paul Copan, William Lane Craig, Debbie Licona, and Sean McDowell.

The team conducted more than 1,000 hours of research, interviewed 25 people and consulted supporting documents and experts.

The report is the latest in the wake of years of scandals and lawsuits from sexual abuse allegations against Ravi Zacharias, the famous apologist who died in 2020. Several independent reports have found “significant, credible evidence” of wrongdoing by Zacharias.

The most recent report found that Phillips, Murray and Ramsden, RZIM’s Senior Leadership Team (SLT), “intimidated, mistreated, or retaliated against” RZIM staff members who “pushed back or asked legitimate questions” from 2017 to 2021.

One is Ruth Malhotra, the organization’s former PR manager, who said she was targeted after she sought information about the alleged scandals. Malhotra claimed that senior leaders “systematically marginalized, maligned, and misrepresented” her to other people.

According to ChurchLeaders.com, “other former employees, who fear retaliation, claim that RZIM leaders reprimanded them for insubordination and scolded them spiritually for raising concerns about Zacharias.”

Related:

RZIM to Change Name, Remove Content Related to the Late Ravi Zacharias

Late Apologist Ravi Zacharias Did Engage in 'Sexual Misconduct,' RZIM Board Confirms

Photo courtesy: ©Getty Images/pcess609


Amanda Casanova is a writer living in Dallas, Texas. She has covered news for ChristianHeadlines.com since 2014. She has also contributed to The Houston Chronicle, U.S. News and World Report and IBelieve.com. She blogs at The Migraine Runner.



Team of Apologists Determines 3 Former RZIM Leaders Are 'Not Fit to Be in Ministry'