Dr. William Weaver, a Presbyterian minister in New Jersey, has been accused of using oral sex among methods to extract evil from men.
The 69-year-old has served as pastor in the city of Linden the last 39 years for Linden Presbyterian Church.
via Newsweek:
In January, he was set to attend an internal church trial for accusations by three men of what the church called “multiple acts of idolatry and sexual conduct.”
The Elizabeth Presbytery, which supervises 41 churches over a three-country region, was contacted by the men. An investigation committee within the Presbytery ministry determined a hearing needed to take place. But one day before the hearing this January, Dr. Weaver denounced his membership and ordination of the local Presbytery.
Weaver reportedly moved to a gated community in Lakewood after his denouncement.
Victims involved in the case said they reported the incidents to local police, though the Union County Prosecutor’s Office did not comment when asked by the Bridgewater Courier News. When contacted by the Courier News for the story, Weaver also declined to comment. No public charges have been filed against him, the newspaper said.
The committee determined “there are probable grounds or cause to believe that an offense was committed by the accused.”
Had Weaver been found to have violated church rules at the internal trial, his sentence would have been expulsion from the Presbyterian ministry. However, any charges brought forward by the church would have no bearing on potential criminal charges.
In a statement, the Rev. Leslie Dobbs-Allsopp, who is interim leader of Elizabeth Presbytery, acknowledged the allegations.
“In April 2018, the Presbytery of Elizabeth received allegations of multiple instances of sexual misconduct perpetrated by William Weaver, who was a minister member of the Presbytery. The Presbytery of Elizabeth, a regional body of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), takes seriously any allegation of misconduct,” said Dobbs-Allsopp.
Dobbs-Allsopp added that the church went by the book on its procedures to follow-up on allegations of sexual misconduct, which included policies set forth by the Book of Order, the Constitution of the Presbyterian Church in the United States.
“Mr. Weaver was placed on administrative leave while the Investigating Committee conducted interviews with multiple witnesses,” Dobbs-Allsopp said. “The allegations were found to be credible, and disciplinary charges were filed, and an ecclesiastical disciplinary hearing date was set.”
The in-depth article had interviews with all three men who accused Weaver of misconduct.
A.J. Meeker, 37, sought counseling from Weaver when he was 20.
“If you mentioned Bill Weaver’s name in Linden or Union County, people would say, ‘Oh, we love Bill!'” said Meeker. “He volunteered all over the place, he was moderator of the Presbytery. He did a lot of things and was very well connected.”
Meeker claimed to have sought a soothing voice after a strained relationship with his father and stepmother, dropping out of college and moving out of his family’s home.
“I have dealt with the abandonment issues, depression and anxiety that this caused. I was dating my soon-to-be ex-wife and became a member of the Linden Presbyterian Church,” Meeker said. “While going there, I found Rev. Bill Weaver to be a kind and compassionate person who was very easy to talk to.”
Meeker apparently went to sessions with Weaver in a house owned by the church, where the minister would open a suitcase that contained “feathers, assorted stones, buckeyes, a magnetic strip, an angel coin and Ziploc bags,” according to a statement.
Meeker wrote graphic descriptions of his encounters in a statement, saying the sessions began with Weaver telling him to strip naked and lay on a bed. The minister then placed a series of stones around Meeker, beginning at his feet and then lining upwards towards his chest.
“I was told that for him to get everything out me, I needed to lay completely still to not move the stones on my feet,” Meeker wrote. “He would then take out the feather and scan my body from my neck to my stomach.”
Meeker then wrote that he was ordered to open his mouth, upon which the minister would place his mouth on top of his and swirl his tongue around “to see if I had anything in my mouth or throat. Meeker said one session led to another, with the minister eventually “engaging in oral sex.”
“He would then ingest my ejaculate and then would spit up multiple pieces of plastic or metal into a Ziploc bag,” Meeker wrote.
Those were the evils the minister claim to have released, the report said.
“He was very touchy-feely, like everyone got a hug or a kiss on the cheek, or stuff like that,” Meeker said. “He was just very hands-on — never inappropriate publicly — it was just like he was very loving and very caring.”
The other two men who accused Weaver of allegations have similar stories, and outside counsel has looked at accusations as criminal. According to attorney Robert Fuggi, who does not represent anyone connected to the case, Weaver could be tried in a civil court.
What is going on in the church?! You can read more on this wild tale via Newsweek.
