Tate to return as pastor after ‘time of leave’
Fellowship Monrovia‘s board has announced their intention to reinstate Albert Tate as lead pastor of the Southern California mega-church after his “time of leave.” Tate was put on leave by the board after inappropriate text and behavior came to light. Tate has since confessed his behavior and is working with the board in what they are calling a restoration plan. The board is made of up five members including former Fuller Theological Seminary President, Mark Labberton.
On November 5, Tate and his wife LaRosa attended worship and Albert publically apologized and repented of his behavior, inappropriate texts, and leadership style that resulted in a toxic culture among the staff. That culture has resulted in a number of staff already leaving the church, and more staff changes are imminent.
“The full restoration process has been going on for some time and will continue. We have established a restoration plan and a Restoration Team to work with Pastor Albert over the months to come,” the statement by the board of Fellowship Monrovia read.
“Forgiveness takes time, and repentance has to be lived out in real-time,” the statement continued. With that in mind, Albert and his wife LaRosa will be back in worship with the church starting November 26.
“We want you to know that based on Albert’s confession and repentance, on the restoration work that has been going on for a number of months, including and extending beyond these weeks of leave, the Board has now asked Pastor Albert to begin to re-engage the staff over the weeks to come.” That re-engagement includes rebuilding relationships and trust among the staff and beginning the rebuilding process starting this week.
In addition, the church announced more cuts to the staff happening immediately to better balance the budget amid changes in giving.
