Pastor Michael Orten from Truth Apostolic Church in Madisonville, Kentucky, has earned the title of being “pro-rape” after he not only employed a man convicted of raping a 13-year-old girl but also defended the crime, comparing the forcible act of rape of a child at knifepoint to stealing candy. Orten also implied that the child who his employee raped was somehow equally responsible for the violent assault, saying it takes “two to tango”.
The truth about Thomas Hopper, the employee, who was convicted of raping and sodomizing a young child in the 1990s, surfaced after television station WFIE started receiving numerous anonymous tip offs, claiming a convicted sex offender had been employed by Orten at his church. The local news station started investigating the church based on these tip offs and found that Hopper was in fact a convicted sex offender with a long list of other crimes and he had been hired by Orten as part of his church’s outreach ministry staff. This means Hopper, along with other volunteers, now works to recruit new members for Truth Apostolic Church.
Even though Hopper features on Kentucky’s Sex Offender Registry for the convicted rape and sodomy of a 13-year-old girl, his conviction as well as placement on that registry means the only limitation he faces is that he needs permission before setting foot on any school premises.
After serving 10 years for raping and sodomizing a 13-year-old, Hopper was in fact interviewed by WFIE in 2003, when he was in the news for being arrested yet again, this time for stalking. At the time, Hopper agreed that his criminal record may be shocking but he believes he “still has a future and is doing what he is meant to be do”. Since then, Hopper has only furthered his criminal record, with two additional convictions, including one for trespassing and another for assault.
In addition, Orten hired Hopper knowing everything about his criminal past. He cited his religious beliefs while explaining how Hopper had already been forgiven for his sins and now has a changed nature due to which he would never commit those crimes again. He went on to elucidate how his church has certain policies in place that would ensure both Hopper and the youth are protected.
As opposed to Orten, who said church members already knew of Hopper’s past, some individuals have come forward stating they were completely unaware that one of the church’s employees is a convicted sex offender, who at some point, preyed upon a child.
“I was very upset,” one church member said in an interview. “Because I had children, and I was not made aware [of Hopper’s past]… All they would tell me is ‘God has changed him.'”
However, what has angered many people apart from Orten stubbornly defending his hiring of Hopper by saying such actions only prove Christ’s power to forgive and redeem, is the way in which he defended the rapist during an interview.
“Yep, that’s what he done, most certainly,” Orten stated, with regards to Hopper raping and sodomizing a child, before going on to excuse his violent crime by saying he was angry at the time and both his victim and he were on drugs.
Orten then decided to liken Hopper’s crime to a child stealing candy before completely blaming the victim for being raped by her perpetrator as he held a razor knife to her throat.
“Both stealing the candy and raping a child are sins in God’s eyes,” the pastor said. “Besides, if the girl chooses to sleep with him, she’s just as guilty as he is… It takes two to tango.”
Since Orten’s vexatious interview, his church’s doors have remained locked and its website has gone offline. A post on the church’s Facebook page, which is now unavailable, ordered all members to have themselves removed from the social media platform until the issue is resolved.
“Do not comment or feed into the mess that the devil is creating. Leave it alone, let it be! Let’s not tag others in it either,” the post read.
Photo Credits: Borgen Project
