Ex-ROC pastor withdraws from Good Friday program

VIRGINIA
Richmond Times-Dispatch

Louis Llovio Richmond Times-Dispatch

RICHMOND — A former city pastor facing child sexual assault charges in Texas said today he will not speak at a Good Friday program in Richmond after the appearance was denounced by Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests.

Geronimo Aguilar said in an email that he will not participate in the event at Cedar Street Baptist Church of God.

“Due to all the controversy over me preaching at Cedar Street’s Good Friday service, I have decided it is best for all involved that I step down from participating in the event,” Aguilar said. “I have spoken with Dr. Chandler, pastor of Cedar Street, and we both believe this is the best thing for all those concerned.”

Aguilar was arrested in May on charges that he abused an 11-year-old and her 13-year-old sister in the 1990s. He resigned in June from the Richmond Outreach Center, the Richmond megachurch he founded and of which he was senior pastor.

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