Yet Another Memorial Day Deception: Senior Pastor Dr. Ed Young - 4th Installment

Welcome to the next installment of Yet Another Memorial Day Deception: Senior Pastor Dr. Ben Young.

On the Friday of Memorial Day Weekend 2025, Pastor Ben Young sent a letter attempting to defend the events surrounding the May 2023 alleged bylaw changes, and resulting governance, at Second Baptist Church. He painted a picture of order, unity, and legality.

But, in his OWN WORDS, Pastor Ben Young acknowledges that accountability is important and then provides information that explains precisely why the governance structure designed by the alleged bylaws are dangerous and is not in the best interest of Second Baptist Church.

We now continue to explore the difference between the talking points and the facts. The items below are backed by timelines, firsthand accounts, and legal context.

Here are Pastor Ben Young’s direct statements, in red font, followed by our response.

Pastor Ben Young’s Statement: “Can you read the bylaws?

Yes. Just contact the main church office and you can view them at any of our six campuses. Most churches do not put them on their website but you are free to read them at our church with a team member who can answer any questions you may have.”

JCC Response: Thank you for finally making the bylaws somewhat easier to access. Only after hundreds, if not thousands, of phone calls, emails, requests, etc. did Pastor Ben Young make it so that people could read them at their home campus. However, requiring an appointment to view the bylaws is not transparency. Telling members they may not take pictures of the bylaws is not transparency. Having an SBC lawyer present while members try to read the bylaws is intimidating. True transparency means governing documents are publicly accessible. When will the alleged bylaws be posted to the website so members do not have to jump through hurdles to read the alleged governing documents? What is so secret about them that they require being read in person, with a staff member? Is it because you and the MLT can change the bylaws at any time without a vote by the membership, or even providing them notice?

Pastor Ben Young’s Statement: “They are excellent bylaws developed by our team, key lay leaders at our church, and with the help from some of the top religious law firms in the country.”

JCC Response: This is a SHOCKING statement. The bylaws were put forth to transfer the power of the church from the membership to the Senior Pastor. This is clearly explained in the article from Baptist News. Anyone who is reading this should not just believe that article, they should go to the website run by Pastor Young’s brother, Dr. Ed Young, Jr., where he will sell you a similar “Church Bylaws Kit” for $70. https://creativepastors.com/product/church-bylaws-kit/

The purpose of these “bylaws in a box” sold by Dr. Ed Young, Jr., is to have a “staff-led church,” NOT a member-led church!

Pastor Ben Young’s Statement: “Who is on the Ministry Leadership Team (MLT)?

Currently the MLT is comprised of David Tauber, church member for 41 years, Lee Maxcy, church staff finance pastor, Cliff Young, global worship pastor, Dennis Brewer, religious law attorney, Mac Richard, church planter and senior pastor of Lake Hills Church in Austin, and myself. To clarify, the MLT does not run the church. The MLT does not set salaries. The MLT serves as an advisory role like most boards and has a fiduciary responsibility owed to Second Baptist Church. Daily, weekly, monthly, yearly, empirically the church is led by our pastors on each campus and our dedicated staff.”

JCC Response: NOW we are getting somewhere!! Thank you for finally publishing this list and making our case for us! To make this section as easy as possible for everyone to follow, we will put it into a digestible format:

Pai	Role	JCC Comment
David Tauber	Church Member	Can be removed at any time from the MLT
Lee Maxcy	Church Staff Finance Pastor	Paid staff; removable by Pastor Ben Young
Cliff Young	Global Worship Pastor	Pastor Ben Young's Brother
Dennis Brewer	Religious Law Attorney	Paid church lawyer; is CFO of Fellowship Church in Dallas, run by Pastor Ben Young's brother, Ed Young
Mac Richard	Church Planter and Senior Pastor	Pastor Ben Young's family member
Dr. Ben Young	Senior Pastor	Appoints the board; has the ability to cast two votes

One of the egregious misrepresentations in this entire letter is what Pastor Ben Young says regarding the MLT when he states, “The MLT does not run the church. The MLT does not set salaries. The MLT serves as an advisory role like most boards…” Either one of two things are true here: Either the MLT has virtually no power and all power is possessed by the Senior Pastor, who can fire any staff member at any time. Or the MLT has the power, and Pastor Ben Young has misrepresented the role of the MLT.

Fortunately, the alleged bylaws make the powers of the MLT very clear: Section 5.02 The MLT shall be considered the governing body of the church. They shall have final authority for affairs pertaining to property. They shall have the power to buy, sell, mortgage, pledge or encumber any church property.

Stated succinctly, despite what Pastor Ben Young wrote, the MLT can sell a campus, merge the church with another church, like Fellowship Church which is run by Ed Young, Jr., and has ultimate control over Second Baptist’s ~$1 billion in assets! 

Additionally, the alleged bylaws provide the following powers to the MLT:

5.09 The MLT is entitled to select advisors to purchase or otherwise acquire stocks, bonds, securities, and other investments on behalf of the church. 

6.03 The MLT can remove the Senior Pastor for cause (but only due to egregious reasons and requires a 2/3s vote).

6.05 The MLT replaces the Senior Pastor in the event of a vacancy. (notice – with no vote by the membership or even a search committee that consists of members)

7.02 The MLT establishes the Finance Team, the Personnel Team, Budget Planning Team and Legal Team and approves the Senior Pastor’s nomination of its members. 

11.03 The MLT selects the church auditor.

14.01 The MLT can alter, amend or repeal the bylaws. (notice – with no vote or even notice to the members)

Further, Pastor Ben Young makes this statement of the MLT, “and has a fiduciary responsibility owed to Second Baptist Church.”

Pastor Ben Young’s statement is disproved by his own alleged bylaws! Section 5.08 says that the MLT, legally designated as the board of directors, will not have the duties of trustees (layman’s terms).

What is so disconcerting is that Pastor Ben Young is making the case that the MLT/Board governance is acceptable. This is one of the most alarming admissions in the entire letter. It is dangerous and irresponsible to claim that a body controlled by family members and paid staff constitutes a fiduciary safeguard. The entire purpose of a board of directors is to hold leadership accountable, not to serve under them.

This is governance in name only, and it is structurally incapable of preventing abuse.

To show how much control the Senior Pastor has over the MLT, the MLT is not authorized to even MEET without the Senior Pastor being PRESENT for the meeting! Moreover, the MLT cannot REMOVE the Senior Pastor, except in extreme instances that would not be acceptable to a publicly traded company or large non-profit.

This is a governance model riddled with conflicts of interest and is strikingly similar to the failed internal structure of Enron. As most Houstonians are painfully aware, advisory boards and legal officers were installed to create a façade of accountability. Yet, billions of dollars were lost and thousands of lives were devastated by the lack of oversight and accountability. This MLT design appears to be intentionally structured as a rubber stamp body incapable of providing true oversight. 

If Pastor Ben Young cannot see that placing subordinates and family-affiliated individuals in positions of oversight is an obvious breach of fiduciary integrity, then he is either deeply naïve or willfully ignoring fundamental principles of accountability. This is not how a healthy church, or any healthy institution, should function.  

Is this what Dr. H. Edwin Young meant when he told multiple witnesses, “This was the biggest mistake of my life!”?

Pastor Ben Young – Do the Honorable Thing – Right the Wrong of 2023

What is most concerning is how Pastor Young cannot see that this structure could be used inappropriately by anyone who becomes Senior Pastor AFTER him. The leader's role is to protect the church, for generations!

Here within is the obvious solution that would remove this matter from the court system and allow the church to heal and be unified. Pastor Ben Young, we are calling on you to lead, as you have the power to resolve all issues with the stroke of a pen, if you are truly willing to do what is best for Second Baptist Church.

Call a meeting of the church membership to vote on the alleged new bylaws that you believe should govern the church. If the membership votes to support the proposed new bylaws, everyone will know that it was the will of the church body, with full disclosure and no deception. These steps would provide a fair and transparent process:

• Schedule a vote on the proposed bylaws with 60 days’ notice to all members of Second Baptist, at a centralized location for efficiency

  
  

• Provide both electronic and physical copies to all members at least 30 days in advance so they can make an informed decision

  
  

• Require every person who attends the meeting to sign in and have an independent third party verify their church membership

  
  

• Let both sides of this issue present their case to the membership with equal time

  
  

• Then let the members cast a written vote which is counted by an independent third party that is agreeable to both sides

This would allow this matter to be resolved within the church, saving hundreds of thousands of dollars of tithes that are being used to pay legal fees on behalf of Pastor Ben Young and the other defendants. Proceeding in this way would enable the membership to have a voice in the governance of the church they love, restore trust in the church leadership, and avoid a long and unpleasant public court battle.

If the membership votes to no longer be a member-led church, then everyone will know that is indeed their desire and the decision was made with full transparency. There is no reason that you, as the Senior Pastor, should not be willing to put the bylaws that you clearly support to a transparent and fair vote of the membership.

Stay tuned for the next installment, with a more detailed look at the facts.

Please send this to every Second Baptist member you know.