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Marvin Smith, pastor of harvest Baptist church in Fort Dodge, Iowa, do you remember hiding
the *** at your school by a man named Rick Durbin who was a counselor, preacher, and
teacher there? I do. I also remember how you let him simply resign. I remember you covering
it up. I remember how you attempted to blame the child. I remember the exchange of money
that crossed hands. Your guilt must be enormous if you truly believe everything that you preach.
If you have no guilt, you are not fit to be a pastor. You need to own up to your mistakes.
You need to make things right. You need to apologize to yourself, the victims, and your
people. You need to tell the truth. You should not be protecting a ***. You are a coward.
You cared more about your reputation than your ministry. I hope they both crumble to
the ground lest you come forward. If you refuse and continue to live a lie, may your god never
forgive you and may you live a hopeless life. Rick Durbin, you are a sick and vile man.
You had children of your own. You had a beautiful family and a beautiful wife. How you could
do such a heinous act on a child deserves no forgiveness nor will it ever be granted.
I hope that you have not continued to act upon your lustful desires toward children.
If so, I pray that when caught, your prison cell mates inflict upon you all the damage
that you have inflicted on others. You preyed upon those who were abandoned by their families.
You manipulated under the guise of security and exerted your power and control. As you
continue to roam free, may your days be full of dread and your nights full of nightmares.
I hope your victims haunt your dreams. I hope that you grow to fear your own shadow and
loathe the sight of yourself in the mirror. I hope that those you love abandon you and
someone preys upon you when you are most vulnerable. Everyone else that was aware of this scandal,
but decided to remain quiet based upon pastoral counsel, abuse is unforgivable. It should
not be covered up. If you know something, and have not told it to the proper authorities,
I hope that your guilt consumes you and you never forgive yourself. I hope the burden
nearly crushes you. I hope the victim frequents your thoughts. I hope that fear and anxiety
become your states of being. By you taking part in the cover up, it shows where your
priorities lie. You cared more about reputation than you did honesty and love. You deserve
neither.