Youth pastor’s arrest affects two churches

OKLAHOMA
Baptist News

By Bob Allen

Two prominent Southern Baptist churches in Oklahoma are cooperating with police after the arrest of a youth pastor charged with sending inappropriate text messages to four boys at his former congregation.

Police in Shawnee, Okla., arrested Brian Burchfield, 42, July 29 on charges of soliciting sex with a minor and computer crimes. At the time of his arrest Burchfield was serving as young adult pastor at Quail Springs Baptist Church in Oklahoma City, but his alleged crimes involve four teenage boys ranging from 14 to 17 years old he met at Immanuel Baptist Church in Shawnee, Okla., where he reportedly served from June 2006 to April 2014.

Last year Quail Springs Baptist Church was host church for the annual meeting of the Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma. At the meeting Hance Dilback, the church’s pastor since 2003, was elected president of the state affiliate of the Southern Baptist Convention.

The pastor at Immanuel Baptist Church, Todd Fisher, was president of the state convention’s pastor’s conference in 2013 and is a former trustee of Oklahoma Baptist University.

According to the Southern Baptist Convention membership database, Immanuel Baptist Church has 5,141 members and average attendance of 850, while Quail Springs has 4,808 members: and average attendance of 1,446.

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