Jon Paul Sheptock, 49, served as the worship minister at the First Montgomery Baptist Church in Texas before these shocking allegations came to light.
The Human Trafficking and Child Exploitation Unit eventually caught up with the suspect while he was working at a local women’s prison where he served as a minister.
At a Donald Trump rally in January 2022, Sheptock was recruited to sing the national anthem before later posing with the president and his son for pictures.
94 Comments
spaghettiwestern@sh.itjust.works · 141 pts · 299d
Release the Epstein files.
henfredemars@infosec.pub · 15 pts · 299d
Release the -philes you say?
Xella@lemmy.world · 6 pts · 299d
I like the one that says "Guard Our Peodophiles"
FreddiesLantern@leminal.space · 4 pts · 298d
Oh you mean Ted Cruz?
ThePantser@sh.itjust.works · 66 pts · 299d
Add this to the other pile of Trump posing with fellow pedophile images.
JoMiran@lemmy.ml · 61 pts · 299d
tanisnikana@lemmy.world · 56 pts · 299d
It’s always the ones I most suspect.
Jaysyn@lemmy.world · 51 pts · 299d
Not a drag queen.
Brown5500@sh.itjust.works · 5 pts · 299d
I bet he had a trans roommate at some point
/S
pleaseletmein@lemmy.zip · 3 pts · 298d
His cousin’s hairdresser’s sister’s iguana’s vet is trans. Case closed.
aeternum@lemmy.blahaj.zone · 45 pts · 299d
arin@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 299d
Projection from the conservatives.
mavu@discuss.tchncs.de · 38 pts · 299d
What is it with those people?
Is there some kind of competition to be the most terrible person possible?
eugenevdebs@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 19 pts · 299d
Yes. That's the entire point of MAGA.
kewjo@lemmy.world · 8 pts · 299d
i would guess a lot of them make connections over the networks that trade in that kind of material.
zarniwoop@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 10 pts · 299d
Yep. It’s called “church”.
Eldritch@piefed.world · 36 pts · 299d
Won't somebody think of the children? Eew, not like that!
Dionysus@leminal.space · 31 pts · 299d
This is the episode of "Where are they now?" That we needed.
panda_abyss@lemmy.ca · 11 pts · 299d
I want to see this film
Laser@feddit.org · 9 pts · 299d
Don't think I could watch through beans being thrown at him
missfrizzle@discuss.tchncs.de · 3 pts · 299d
for the original musical score by DALDO, if nothing else!
panda_abyss@lemmy.ca · 2 pts · 298d
Beans Aren’t The Worst Thing has helped countless people through having beans thrown at them.
pyre@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 299d
is this obvious plant?
Railing5132@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 299d
It's gotta be... Right‽
I'm really not sure...
bcgm3@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 299d
100% legit, and John Paul Sheptock is the executive producer.
Doomsider@lemmy.world · 29 pts · 299d
Why are all the straight male Christian conservatives trying to fuck children!? WTF is wrong with them.
chronicledmonocle@lemmy.world · 27 pts · 299d
As someone who was forced to grow up in this Baptist bullshit: It's the absolutely insane level of sexual repression. Sex is a bad word. Don't talk about it. Can't even go dancing, if you're Baptist, because it "might lead to sinful contact between dancers" or "impure thoughts".
Can't drink either. You might "cause your brother to stumble". It's a running joke that Baptists go to bars in the next town over, because nobody knows them there, so they won't be judged.
Can't go to anything worse than a PG movie. Can't learn in school about evolution. Can't go to sex Ed class in school and have to be opted out. Can't be friends with non-Christians because "they're able to be influenced against you by the devil at any time" like they're a Devil Manchurian Candidate.
Christianity in America fucking sucks, but Baptists are near the top of being the fucking worst.
Doomsider@lemmy.world · 20 pts · 299d
I have studied religions my whole life trying to understand what is really going on. I have always been open minded, but my conclusion is simply it is about control.
My father was a black sheep Mormon so I am very familiar with the pitfalls of their beliefs. On my grandfather's death bed his sons gathered round him to pray. He pointed at my father and said he was not worthy to pray over him. Othering is always an integral part of Christianity.
The worst thing about religion is it steals the work of man to use for its goals. How many people thank God for surviving cancer when it was their fellow man that cured them. Religion is also insidious because it takes credit for morality when it clearly exists without it.
It reminds me of any loser ideology that tries to claim it does things when it has no real power and claims credit when it is not due. Everyone arguing over what Skydaddy is the best imaginary companion is beyond ridiculous.
chronicledmonocle@lemmy.world · 6 pts · 298d
Well said.
fxleak@lemmings.world · 1 pts · 298d
Maybe it's just me, but I once heard that "baptist" is almost code for "black," in the sense that most baptists churches tend to be occupied primarily by people of color.
This is just what someone else has told me, so it seems a bit odd that stereotypically black churches would be producing white pedophiles.
4am@lemmy.zip · 4 pts · 298d
I don’t think of black people when I think Baptist, but I certainly think of the south, and with the black population being higher there it’s more likely that there are black congregations.
But honestly it’s not close enough to being a “black-only thing” that you could use Baptist as slang for black.
Schmoo@slrpnk.net · 4 pts · 298d
I grew up southern baptist and it was an all-white church. I think I remember a time when there was 1 black family in attendance because they had just moved here. They didn't come back for a second time. The southern baptist church split from the northern baptist church over slavery. Guess which side of that issue the southern baptist church was on?
hateisreality@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 298d
There are many forms of Baptist. The white ones are the worst
chronicledmonocle@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 298d
Southern Baptist and Reformed/Calvinist Baptist are VERY different things.
arin@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 299d
Idk if they are still straight when they diddle pastor boys
floofloof@lemmy.ca · 25 pts · 299d
So which government department will he be given after the pardon?
arin@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 299d
Secretary of foster care
Corkyskog@sh.itjust.works · 25 pts · 299d
Say it with me now
Grand. Old. Pedophiles.
Spacehooks@reddthat.com · 22 pts · 299d
Dude is mega POS
Railing5132@lemmy.world · 17 pts · 299d
And a MAGA POS.
RidgeDweller@sh.itjust.works · 9 pts · 299d
theyrethesamepicture.gif
ThePantser@sh.itjust.works · 22 pts · 299d
PP_BOY_@lemmy.world · 21 pts · 299d
Every time
Formfiller@lemmy.world · 21 pts · 299d
That’s on brand
ohlaph@lemmy.world · 21 pts · 298d
I sense a theme with the GOP. Church leaders getting caught raping, youth pastor pedophiles, famous figures and their vast cp collections.
Is the entire gop just a group of pedophiles in a trench coat?
4am@lemmy.zip · 4 pts · 298d
Always has been 🔫👨🚀
tired_n_bored@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 298d
"Funny" how the GOP helped spread misinformation about a secret Democrat elite abusing children. It has always been projection.
Gerudo@lemmy.zip · 21 pts · 299d
Yet again, not a drag queen. Color me shocked!
BMW_stick@lemmy.world · 20 pts · 299d
I'm sure this was Biden's fault.
Imgonnatrythis@sh.itjust.works · 20 pts · 299d
I'll never forgive Biden for the time he shit in my pants. This guy should be outraged.
Notyou@sopuli.xyz · 2 pts · 298d
This you?
MourningDove@lemmy.zip · 9 pts · 299d
BigMacHole@sopuli.xyz · 19 pts · 299d
Why would the Party of Protecting Jeffrey Epstein and having Unidentified Masked Armed Men KIDNAPPING Children be full of Pedophiles? It DOESNT make Sense!
aesthelete@lemmy.world · 19 pts · 298d
G eriatrics
O ligarchs
P edophiles
HugeNerd@lemmy.ca · 18 pts · 299d
All religions are a mental illness, and often come with comorbidities.
z3rOR0ne@lemmy.ml · 16 pts · 299d
If you're a White Republican/MAGA/Christian Male, I'm just going to assume you're a pedophile now. The probabilities are just too high.
Release The Epstein Files...oh, and, y'know, actually DO something about it afterwards....
EDIT: spelling
damnedfurry@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 299d
So if everyone who's over 7 feet tall is male, by your logic, everyone who's male is over 7 feet tall.
Hopefully that makes it obvious just how flawed this reasoning is.
Mainstream media is the last place you want to learn probability from. It's the reason that over decades of violent crime rates decreasing, the public is led to believe that it's been increasing that entire time.
TrickDacy@lemmy.world · 13 pts · 299d
It's truly remarkable how about once a week we see a headline like this regarding a conservative. For left leaning people it's more like once every 3-6 months.
damnedfurry@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 299d
Have you considered that the media you are (or allow yourself to be) exposed to, plays a part in that?
As an example, this took literal seconds to find, and it's an article from this month:
I bet you've never heard of this person, or ever saw this article, right?
Before I explicitly looked, I hadn't either. But it's not that it was hidden, really, just that it's not the data the algorithms put in front of my eyes, without me having to go seek it. Don't underestimate the impact these algorithms have on what you're made aware of, and how that controlled exposure can shape, or warp, your sense of reality.
I'll never forget that graph that showed the comparison of how much violent crime had decreased over the years in the US, juxtaposed with public perception of violent crime rates literally rising in inverse proportion over the same period of time, thanks to mainstream media sensationalism. Ever since that day, I've tried to keep myself from making assumptions about how common something is, based on how often it's reported on, especially when it comes to controversial/shocking subjects like these, as those are the ones where there is the most temptation for an outlet to sensationalize.
TrickDacy@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 298d
You raise a good point.
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/147-lawmakers-in-44-states-accused-of-sexual-harassment-or-misconduct-since-2017
AllNewTypeFace@leminal.space · 12 pts · 299d
The writers need to get some new material. They’re starting to repeat themselves.
xpey@piefed.social · 12 pts · 299d
Big surprise. /s
SpiceDealer@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 11 pts · 299d
This is how predators keep their victims silent: exploit their embarrassment. It's easy to say "Well, they shouldn't have sent that in the first place" but that's blaming the victim and not addressing the issue. A minor was taken advantage of and an adult received satisfaction from it. If this happened to you or someone you know, speak out. Take the power away from the predators. The embarrassment is only temporary because, in the end, it's your well-being that matters.
Zak@lemmy.world · 6 pts · 298d
The fact that kids don't make good decisions when placed in adult situations is exactly why we have laws to punish adults who exploit them.
slickgoat@lemmy.world · 11 pts · 299d
Of course it is. CP is a mandatory line item for a typical MAGA resume.
damnedfurry@lemmy.world · -7 pts · 299d
Is this kind of absurd hyperbole really productive?
the_radness@lemmy.world · 5 pts · 299d
Not unless they also mention racism, transphobia and homophobia as the other line items.
rockettaco37@lemmy.world · 10 pts · 299d
Another Republican pedophile? Color me fuckin shocked, eh?
tired_n_bored@lemmy.world · 10 pts · 298d
Oh look another dangerous transgender woman! No wait, it's always either some Pastor or some Trump-affiliated person.
Corporal_Punishment@feddit.uk · 10 pts · 298d
Guardians
Of
Paedophiles
reddifuge@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 298d
Groomers On Parade. Group Of Pedophiles
NABDad@lemmy.world · 9 pts · 299d
It might be easier at this point to list the Republicans who aren't pedophiles and sexual predators.
Edit:
There.
I think that's all of them.
Xella@lemmy.world · 6 pts · 299d
What's crazy is I think the only one that isn't a sexual predator is.. and I really hate typing this bitches name.. Marjorie Taylor Greene
SlippiHUD@lemmy.world · 8 pts · 299d
Sometimes I feel like making a conspiracy board pf every pedophile Trump has given money to in the past, but I feel it's too big a board to build. It might crush my house.
altphoto@lemmy.today · 8 pts · 299d
So...is that priest listed in the Epstein files? Can we see those? Or is the guy innocent so we can't see that?
SaraTonin@lemmy.world · 8 pts · 299d
Would it save time at this point if, rather than reporting on every Republican paedophile, we just reported every time it was revealed that a Republican wasn’t a paedophile?
floofloof@lemmy.ca · 4 pts · 299d
Do you want to make all the journalists unemployed?
fossilesque@mander.xyz · 8 pts · 299d
damnedfurry@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 299d
Come on, not all singers molest children.
explodicle@sh.itjust.works · 2 pts · 299d
Because diddlers will go after whichever demographics allow the most diddling.
beejboytyson@lemmy.world · 7 pts · 299d
The repedocan party
limonfiesta@lemmy.world · 7 pts · 299d
He has no arms...
Given the charges, that leaves me with some additional questions...
burntbacon@discuss.tchncs.de · 2 pts · 299d
The questions shouldn't be too hard. There was once, in the vaudeville scene, a girl who brought the crowds flocking to see her. They watched her eat, drink, put on makeup and shoes. They didn't do it because she was lewd, standing nude, nor because of her words and witty banter... they did it because she had no arms and was able to do it all with her feet.
I could see a setup to type and use a mouse with feet, if not one of those head devices with a laser pointer.
UltraMagnus0001@lemmy.world · 6 pts · 299d
He will be pardoned like all of trumps other child trafficking friends
DarrinBrunner@lemmy.world · 5 pts · 299d
Don't worry about him, he's not dangerous. He's unarmed.
myfunnyaccountname@lemmy.zip · 5 pts · 299d
More winning for the GOP!!
acme401@lemmy.world · 5 pts · 299d
Pedophiles, Republicans, and Texas
SendMePhotos@lemmy.world · 5 pts · 299d
When will he be pardoned?
Juice@midwest.social · 5 pts · 298d
Same shit, different pedophile
miguel@fedia.io · 4 pts · 299d
st33lb0ne@lemmy.world · 4 pts · 298d
That seems on brand for MAGA
jjjalljs@ttrpg.network · 4 pts · 299d
Thinking about the pedocon theory post again : https://www.liberalcurrents.com/we-need-to-talk-about-pedocon-theory/
Wilco@lemmy.zip · 4 pts · 299d
Yea, that checks out.
ieGod@lemmy.zip · 3 pts · 299d
Surprise surprise.
damnedfurry@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 299d
I feel like the fact that he was a church minister is much more relevant information for the headline. Who gives a shit that he sang a song at a Trump rally once, seriously? Clickbait slop.
explodicle@sh.itjust.works · 3 pts · 299d
It establishes notability. There's a lot more ministers than Trump performers.
canajac@lemmy.ca · 0 pts · 298d
Of course, he's a hypocritical religious person who hides behind the bible BS he learned from mommy and daddy.
reddifuge@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 298d
Not hypocrisy, the bible supports pedophilia. It's disgusting backwards ass bullshit and half remembered ghost stories written by inbred winos.