How a Christian college ministry glorified a sex offender and enabled him to keep abusing studentsDaniel Savala urged generations of Chi Alpha members to get naked in his Houston sauna. Why did Assemblies of God pastors keep bringing teenagers to his home? NBC News has just released its most damning article yet in the Pastors and Prey investigative series, exposing how the Assemblies of God and its campus ministry Chi Alpha glorified and enabled a known sex offender, Daniel Savala, for over 30 years. Despite being a convicted child sex offender, Savala was protected, promoted, and propped up by Chi Alpha leaders, especially at Sam Houston State University and Texas A&M, where pastors—some of whom were also abused—trafficked teenage boys and their own children into Savala’s backyard sauna. Multiple whistleblowers warned AG national and district leadership, including Doug Clay and Donna Barrett, as early as 2012 and again in 2018. Yet, Savala remained a beloved “spiritual mentor” and continued to host students in his home for years. NBC revealed: Dozens of victims were groomed and abused by Savala under the guise of “spiritual mentorship.” A Chi Alpha pastor took his own sons, ages 11 and 12, to be abused by Savala. Top AG officials were repeatedly warned, including through direct emails, and did nothing meaningful. When survivors went public, AG leadership responded by hiding behind lawyers and NDAs, not repentance.
One ministry leader recently said: “This scandal isn't about one predator. It’s about a system that rewards silence, shields enablers, and listens more to lawyers than the Holy Spirit.”
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