Why we can’t let the Soul Survivor scandal quietly slip away
The scandal at Soul Survivor isn’t just another unfortunate episode in a long line of church abuses - this is a profound and brutal failure of leadership, ethics, and basic human decency. It’s been weeks since Fiona Scolding QC’s report tore the lid off years of predatory abuse, neglect, and willful ignorance in the Soul Survivor organisation. And yet, the dust seems to be settling, far too quickly, as if a neatly filed report and a couple of press statements have put things to rest. Let’s be clear: what happened at Soul Survivor was an absolute disgrace. The fact that it’s already slipping from public attention is a disgrace in itself. This isn’t something we can let pass by, and to do so would be to spit in the face of every person whose life was marred by Mike Pilavachi’s abuse, and by those who enabled it.
It Was Never Just About One Man
What makes this scandal especially abhorrent is that it was never just about one man, but a structure that actively allowed abuse to fester. This wasn’t about a single predator slipping through the cracks. This was an organisation where leaders closed ranks, turned a blind eye, or outright covered up Pilavachi’s appalling actions. The abuse was woven into the very fabric of the institution. Soul Survivor is a name known worldwide, synonymous with trust and spiritual growth for many young people, and yet, at its core, it harbored a man who used his power to abuse, manipulate, and silence. And still, weeks after the report, all we’re seeing is vague assurances, a sprinkling of changes, and an attitude of “let’s move on.”
Consider this: Mike Pilavachi wielded immense influence over young people, creating an atmosphere of reverence around him that protected him from scrutiny. According to the report, Pilavachi had the habit of manipulating, grooming, and exploiting young men, who believed they were receiving “spiritual guidance.” And his methods were overt - his behavior was right out in the open. But where were the people around him? Where were the leaders, the trustees, the supposed checks and balances that should have spotted and stopped his actions long ago? The answer is chilling: they were there, but they chose not to act. And now, many of these same people are either still in leadership or slipping quietly away, leaving us with nothing but a flimsy narrative of “moving forward.”
Is Walking Away OK?
Andy Croft, for one, has simply walked away without so much as a full public accounting of his actions. Here was a man deeply embedded in the leadership structure, someone who should have been a first line of defense for the young people in Pilavachi’s orbit. Yet instead of transparency or accountability, Croft leaves us with silence - a silence that suggests either a disturbing level of complicity or, at best, an unacceptable lack of awareness for someone in a position of responsibility. And then there’s Ali Martin, reinstated in her former role, despite claiming she was unaware of what was happening under her nose. Martin’s supposed “naivety” is astounding. How detached, how out of touch with your own organisation do you have to be to miss years of abuse happening right under your roof? And if that really was the case, what qualifies her to return to leadership? Either she knew, or she was completely ineffective. Neither answer should lead to reinstatement.
The most sickening part of this whole debacle? There are already whispers that Pilavachi might be considering a return to ministry somewhere, that he could slide back into a pulpit like nothing happened. That’s where we are - an accused abuser hiding out, no concrete answers about his future, no permanent public disavowal. And Soul Survivor’s response? “We commissioned the report, we made some changes, now we’re moving on.” Moving on? This was abuse on a grand scale, enabled by leaders who refused to protect their flock. You don’t just “move on” from that. You dig deep, you tear the rot out by its roots, and you ensure nothing like this can ever happen again. Anything less is a betrayal of the survivors, of anyone who has ever believed the church should be a safe space.
Be Outraged!
Where’s the outrage? Why aren’t more people demanding answers? The fact that this is already beginning to fade from public discourse is infuriating. It’s as if “scandal fatigue” has set in, and no one can muster the energy to care anymore. But that’s exactly how this happens - this is why abuse festers in powerful institutions. Scandals come and go, there’s a period of uproar, maybe even a few “safeguarding reforms,” and then the institution carries on as if it’s business as usual. And if we allow this scandal to die down quietly, we’re complicit in that cycle. We’re allowing the Soul Survivors of the world to avoid the reckoning they so desperately need.
And what happens to the survivors? Where are they in all of this? For years, they were silenced, gaslit, and abandoned by the very people they should have been able to trust. These are real people, with real wounds that won’t heal simply because a report has been filed and a couple of minor players have stepped down. The survivors deserve our attention, our outrage, and our continued demands for justice. Every day that goes by without full accountability is a day their pain is minimised, a day their trauma is trivialised.
To let this scandal go quiet is to betray the core principles of justice, safety, and integrity. We owe it to everyone affected by this abuse to demand real answers, not platitudes. We need transparency, not “moving on.” We need genuine reform, not a superficial shuffle of roles. This wasn’t an unfortunate blip - this was an institutional breakdown that needs to be held up to the light and examined in all its grim detail.
So let’s not let this scandal slip away into the background like so many others before it. This isn’t just about fixing a broken system at Soul Survivor; it’s about facing up to the truth that abuse, when covered up or ignored, becomes systemic. We cannot allow the people who enabled Pilavachi’s behavior to evade scrutiny, hide in silence, or quietly move on as if their inaction and complicity were mere missteps. If we let them escape accountability now, we’re setting the stage for future harm, in this organisation and others.
Be Louder
We need to be louder, more unrelenting in our demands for transparency, and resolute in our calls for reform. Every leader who turned a blind eye, every person who shrugged off concerns, and everyone who knew but kept quiet has a duty to answer to those they failed. The message we must send to Soul Survivor, and to every other institution, is that abuse will not be swept under the rug, and silence will not be an option. Real healing can only begin when we confront these painful truths, not by letting them slip quietly into history.