texas

Gateway Church fires pastor over vague β€˜moral failure'

Megachurch says pastor was asked to step down and focus on his marriage and family after an unspecified incident that wasn't related to the resignation of founder Robert Morris in June

A sign at Gateway Church in Southlake, Texas.
NBC DFW

Another North Texas pastor is out of a job after a vague "moral failure."

According to a statement from Gateway Church, Executive Pastor Kemtal Glasgow was asked to step down and focus on his family after an unspecified incident.

"It recently came to light that Kemtal Glasgow had a moral failure so we’ve asked him to step down as a pastor at Gateway and devote time to his marriage and family," the church said in a statement on Thursday. "Although his employment is ending, we are devoted to still caring for Kemtal and his family."

According to a cached version of Glasgow's biography published on the church's website last month, he was an executive pastor who oversaw all Gateway campuses and gathering locations. At the time of this writing, the pastor's biography had been removed from the webpage.

The church did not elaborate on Glasgow's "moral failure" but did say it had nothing to do with the recent departure of founder and longtime senior pastor Robert Morris, who resigned his position in June after a woman said he sexually abused her from 1982 to 1987 beginning when she was 12 years old.

The megachurch initially said Morris was resigning due to "an inappropriate relationship" but later apologized for the mischaracterization and clarified that they believe the abuse suffered by the woman "was, in fact, sexual abuse of a child."

Last month, the church reached an agreement with Morris's son, James, and his wife, Bridgette, that the couple would step down from their positions in the church. James Morris had been tapped to take over Gateway Church in 2025.

"At Gateway, it’s our deepest desire for every staff member to lead a life of integrity, both in their personal and professional lives," the church said. "We are praying for God’s grace and love to be with Kemtal and his family during this time."

The resignation is the latest in a string of departures of North Texas church leaders, all attributed to a vague "moral failure."

In July, Stonebriar Community Church in Frisco terminated Tony Cammarota after he β€œconfessed to church leadership of a moral failure," and Josiah Anthony, the lead pastor at Cross Timbers Church in Argyle, resigned after the church said multiple women came forward accusing him of sending them sexually explicit messages via text and on social media.

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