FORT COLLINS (CO)
ChurchLeaders [Colorado Springs CO]
March 3, 2026
By Dale Chamberlain
Mountain View Community Church, a Virginia multisite church affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC), is coming under scrutiny for employing a man convicted of child sex abuse. Joshua Bowen, who serves as director of the church’s Orange campus, was convicted in 2005 of the statutory rape of a 14-year-old.
At the time of the offense, Bowen was a 24-year-old teacher, and the victim was a student. Bowen pleaded guilty to second-degree statutory sex offense in exchange for several other charges being dropped.
According to court documents obtained by The Roys Report (TRR), Bowen was sentenced to 48-67 months and was credited with time served for “confinement…while awaiting disposition in this matter.”
Court documents indicate that the fact that Bowen “voluntarily acknowledged wrongdoing…at an early stage of the criminal process” was a factor in his sentencing, as well as his “good character,” “good reputation,” and “positive employment history.”
In a testimony given at MVCC in 2019, Bowen admitted to going to prison for “having sex with a former student who was in high school.”
“As dark as things seemed in that moment, as far as I’d pushed God away and run, he still chased me down and found me,” said Bowen.
In Bowen’s profile on MVCC’s website, he writes, “When at my lowest, I was introduced to Jesus, truly hearing the redemptive message of the Gospel for the first time. That day began a radical transformation from the inside out.”
At the time of this article, Bowen is still listed as the church’s Orange campus director. According to TRR, Bowen’s responsibilities at the church involve pastoral care, including premarital counseling.
RELATED: Trial Date Set for Former SBC Pastor Charged With Producing and Possessing CSAM
The SBC has for several years been embroiled in controversy regarding proposed reforms to address clergy sex abuse. While the denomination voted to create an online registry of pastors and church leaders who have been convicted or credibly accused of sexual abuse, efforts to implement the database have been indefinitely put on ice.
Nevertheless, the SBC does have mechanisms for revoking “friendly cooperation” with churches that place convicted sex offenders in positions of spiritual authority.
The Credentials Committee was commissioned in 2019 as a standing committee that investigates claims that churches are no longer “closely aligned” with the denomination’s “faith and practice.” That same year, the SBC added language to its constitution strengthening its stances against sexual abuse and racism.
Since that time, the SBC has disfellowshipped several churches for issues related to sexual abuse and racism. In that same time span, the most common grounds for the SBC disfellowshipping a congregation has been allowing women to serve in pastoral leadership.
Jeff Dalrymple, director of abuse prevention and response for the SBC’s Executive Committee, told TRR that he was not previously aware of Bowen’s history and that he did not know the details of Bowen’s employment at MVCC. He did however indicate that MVCC’s decision to give pastoral responsibility to someone convicted of a sex crime is grounds for the SBC to discontinue its affiliation with the church.
“Sometimes we try to help churches think through some creative ways for someone to serve,” Dalrymple said. “But they should not be serving with children whatsoever.”
Dalrymple added, “They can’t be a part of the Southern Baptist Convention if they’re going to continue to go down this path.” Dalrymple indicated that MVCC could become the subject of a Credentials Committee inquiry.
RELATED: SBC Pastor Accused of Child Sex Crimes, Arson
ChurchLeaders has reached out to MVCC for comment and will update this article in the event of a response.