Report claims CRT prevalent in Scotty Moore’s former job, Moore says not true

ORLANDO, Fla. (FLV) – Republican candidate for state representative Scotty Moore worked for a ministry that has been accused of promoting critical race theory; however, Moore told Florida’s Voice those claims are not true.

Moore worked with Cru, formerly known as Campus Crusade for Christ, for more than a decade, according to his LinkedIn.

For a time, he worked as the City Director for Cru Millennials in Orlando with young adults, coaching them in leadership and sharing the hope of Jesus.

He stopped working for the ministry in 2021 when he ran for U.S. Congress.

In 2020, some staff members reportedly sent a near 180-page report to Cru leadership called “Seeking Clarity and Unity.” It detailed testimonies from people claiming critical race theory was frequently fostered during conferences, in curriculum, and throughout smaller group meetings. Many of the report’s recorded testimonies were anonymous.

“Whereas our national gatherings have traditionally been times of vision casting, mission reinforcement, inspiration, refreshment, encouragement, and rich biblical teaching, the emphasis shifted toward ‘thought leaders’ who taught on victim-oppressor themes,” the report’s executive summary said.

Florida Republicans have made efforts in recent years to purge critical race theory from tax-funded education institutions and government.

Florida’s Voice asked Moore his thoughts on the report as he runs for House District 35.

“To claim that critical race theory was prevalent throughout the ministry is wrong and not true,” Moore said in a statement.

Moore explained that Cru has been an organization steadfast to its original 1951 beginnings with the mission to “win people to Jesus Christ, build them up in their faith based on the Bible and with the help of the local church, and send them out into a world that desperately needs Jesus Christ.”

Cru has more than 6,000 campuses with partnerships in more than 50 countries.

A letter from Scott Pendleton to Cru’s president, Steve Sellers, in the Seeking Clarity and Unity document noted that 350 staff members, which they believe represent “at least 1,000 staff,” met weekly to put together the document with a variety concerns that included critical race theory.

Part of the report claimed that Cru embraced ideas that “divides humanity into victims and oppressors,” including ideas like “whiteness is the root of the problem and must be dismantled,” and “only those in a position of power and privilege can be racists.”

The writers claimed teams were provided prompts asking people to answer questions on systemic racism and how to “tear down” systemic racism in our world.

Moore told Florida’s Voice he stands firmly against critical race theory, saying it is wrong and should not be “taught or embraced” in America nor schools.

“It is not what America stands for and not what Martin Luther King Jr. fought for,” he explained.

Unfortunately, Cru has experienced what many, churches, organizations, and businesses throughout our country and around the world have also experienced related to CRT, which is the radical beliefs of a few individuals trying to push their agenda into the organization that does not embrace nor support CRT.

Scotty Moore

The ministry has made it a goal to pursue “oneness in diversity” over the years as noted on its website.

“…we take Scripture as our plumb line for our unique Christian expressions of love and how we address injustice in the world. This is especially important in response to the various ways in which the world reacts to the historical and contemporary challenges related to oneness in diversity,” Cru writes on its website.

The authors of the report said Cru’s aim to become a more culturally diverse organization is consistent with the core mission to help fulfill Christ’s Great Commission.

“In pursuing these important aims, we have inadvertently adopted a system of unbiblical ideas that have led us to disunity,” the executive summary claimed.

Cru also previously promoted a training through its “The Lenses Institute” ministry, which the report’s authors said was cultural competency training. A couple of those in the report anonymously claimed the training included “a lot of left-leaning agenda” and left people leaving the training “with a tremendous amount of guilt… just for being in the white majority.”

The report claimed some of the readings in the Lenses curriculum included portions from books such as “Racial Microaggressions in Everyday Life” and “The Heart of Whiteness.” The report also provided screenshots that Lenses had allegedly retweeted, which the group claimed also could have put Cru in jeopardy of losing its tax exempt status.

Lenses was reportedly shut down in August 2021.

Within the 179-page report, the authors wrote comments from students and staff members noting that winter conference “talks were on social justice and racial and gender identity” while others said group conversations centered around “white fragility,” watching out for “unequal power dynamics,” and accepting that “police are against black people.”

The report requested that Cru:

• “Acknowledge that elements of the victim-oppressor worldview have permeated our ministry, creating havoc.”
• “Take swift and decisive action to remove every aspect of the victim-oppressor worldview which has influenced our organization at multiple levels.”

When asked why Moore was part of a ministry that allegedly pushed critical race theory, he called it a “misleading and defamatory statement regarding Cru.”

“The mission of Cru has always been helping people all around the world know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior,” Moore responded.

According to a Christianity Today report, Cru’s national director, Mark Gauthier, said the report was very “crushing to many of our BIPOC staff,” especially with the manner in which it was distributed.

“For our BIPOC staff in particular, it raised the question of whether we were backing away—whether or not we were backing away from our biblical pursuit of oneness and diversity,” Gauthier said. “Well, insofar as the research raised real issues, whether we like them or not, that is very helpful. However, the implications that are drawn from the research can lead one to believe that many of our diversity initiatives are unwelcome, ineffective, and constitute mission drift.”

Prior to running for Congress, Moore worked with Cru Millennials, which he said focused on young professionals in the 20’s and 30’s.

“My role in the ministry in 2013-2015 was to help people in their 20’s and 30’s understand how God has given them hope and a future by coaching them in leadership development as well has helping them understand their giftings and talents for each person to live their life,” Moore said. “A major focus of that coaching, we would also share the hope of Jesus and offer opportunities for people to put their faith in Jesus Christ.”