“If a policeman is gentle with the rapist, he is harsh with the rapist’s victim. If a shepherd is gentle with wolves, he is being harsh with the sheep. We must learn when and how we are to be gentle (for we are to be gentle people), and we must also learn when and how we are to be hard (and as pointed) as nails.” Douglas Wilson

With the publication of the Jamin Wight police report, two conflicting stories about Jamin Wight’s felonious abuse of Natalie Greenfield have emerged: the narrative advanced by Pastor Doug Wilson of Christ Church, Moscow; and the account that corresponds to the police report. In the next few days I hope to document the various contradictions between Douglas Wilson and the police report, as well as the inconsistencies in Doug Wilson’s own story. But today I want to compare representations that Gary Greenfield made in his police statement with various representations that Mr. Wilson has made, including his own police statement. What follows are six contrasts between Gary Greenfield and Douglas Wilson in the way each man responded to Jamin Wight’s crimes. Each contrast is organized by subject and based on their own words:

 

Accountability

Gary Greenfield held Jamin Wight directly accountable for his sins:

“I then told him Natalie had made a confession to us and that I now wanted a written statement from him regarding his activity with my daughter during the time he lived with us. . . . After receiving the statement my wife had our daughter read it for accuracy. She stated it was not accurate and that activities were left out. I contacted Jamin again and asked him to rewrite his statement not leaving out any details whatever. . . He delivered the statement to my house and again met with myself and . . .”

Douglas Wilson blame-shifted Jamin Wight’s responsibility for his sins onto Pat & Gary Greenfield:

“Blame-shifting on his part would be utterly inappropriate, and we had Jamin acknowledge that he was in no position to absolve himself by pointing fingers at others. Having said this, I can observe what Jamin should not. . . They did this by inviting Jamin to move in with them, encouraging and permitting a relationship between Jamin and Natalie, while keeping that relationship secret from the broader community. . . but they did know it was a relationship between a man in his mid-twenties and their fourteen-year-old daughter, and they helped to create the climate of secrecy. . . In all my years as a pastor, I don’t believe that I have ever seen such a level of parental foolishness as what the Greenfields did in this.”

Terminology

Gary Greenfield used accurate language to describe Jamin Wight’s sins & crimes:

• “sexual acts”
• “lewd and lascivious behavior with a minor”
• “sexual activities”
• “brazen crimes committed against my daughter”
• “injuries incurred against our daughter”
• “lewd and lascivious conduct with minor”
• “crimes against our daughter”

Doug Wilson incriminated Natalie Greenfield as a consenting partner in Jamin Wight’s sins & crimes, describing her role as “sexual behavior” on numerous occasions.

 

Remedial Efforts

Gary Greenfield worked to cure his home of the damage wrought by Jamin Wight:

“I chose not to take any action until we talked through and contemplated our options and the effect those decisions would have on our daughter and our family. . . . I have endeavored to create an environment in our home that would promote healing and also provide us with the courage we would need to take further legal action against Jamin.”

Doug Wilson accused Gary of “abusive treatment of family” and planned to excommunicate him from the Kirk on this trumped-up charge.

 

Jury Trial

Gary Greenfield sought to protect his daughter from the potential harm she would face if she had to testify against Jamin Wight in a public trial:

“It was during this meeting that Jamin gave his word that if charges were filed against him, he would plead guilty and not contest the charges.”¹

Doug Wilson defended Jamin Wight’s decision to violate the “oath before God” that he made when he promised to plead guilty:

“Doug explained that Jamin has pled not guilty for the purpose of telling the whole story, but he is owning and confessing his sin in this situation.”

Threat

Gary Greenfield recognized that the nature of Jamin Wight’s crimes meant he posed a threat to the community:

“Our hope is that this man will be punished for his crimes against our daughter and also that he could become a responsible citizen who is not a menace to society.”²

Douglas Wilson dismissed the nature of Jamin Wight’s crimes:

“I do not believe that this situation in any way paints Jamin as a sexual predator.”

Proactive Measures

Gary Greenfield acted immediately to safeguard other women & children from Jamin Wight:

“To protect his [Jamin Wight’s] then fiancé, Gary drove to the Tri Cities to tell the parents of his bride-to-be just what kind of man they were about to allow their daughter to marry — and they immediately broke off the engagement for good.”

Douglas Wilson acted immediately to ensure Jamin Wight would not face serious consequences for his felonies:

“I also believe that it requires that I labor to see that justice really is done to Jamin (at the same time excluding injustice through severe penalties). . .”

Conclusion

Gary Greenfield’s statement to the police about Jamin Wight’s crimes is a perfect reflection of him. It is direct, honest, and void of any doublespeak. To be sure, he even waited six months to report the crimes, which is consistent with Gary’s character. He did not want to exacerbate the situation. He wanted to let things cool down. Then he notified the police pursuant to his biblical obligation. And I believe this brief comparison of his words & actions with Mr. Wilson’s demonstrates that Gary Greenfield conducted himself in exact accordance with Scripture and exactly opposite Doug Wilson.

 

Epilogue

Jamin Wight pled guilty to one count of felony Injury to a Child in 2006. He served about four months in North Idaho Correctional Institution and was released on probation. In 2009, Mr. Wight petitioned the court for an early release from his probation; the court granted his request, calling him a “model probationer.” And in 2010 the Kirk sent Mr. Wight on a missionary journey to Haiti. However, in 2013, the sheriff’s department investigated Mr. Wight for spousal abuse (he strangulated his wife) and detectives learned that he had violated his probation contrary to the sworn testimony he gave to the court when he had asked for an early release. Mr. Wight was not a “model probationer.” In 2014 Jamin Wight pled guilty to Perjury for lying to the court in the matter of his probation and he pled guilty to Domestic Battery. The court sentenced him to 60 days for the perjury and 30 days for the battery, or roughly 30 days less than he served for sexually abusing Natalie Greenfield.

Douglas Wilson justifies and does not apologize for his defense of Jamin Wight. Indeed, to use his words, Doug Wilson has learned how “to be hard (and as pointed) as nails,” for in addition to his full-time blogging, he performs in videos by smashing clay pots with a baseball bat. At the same time, if Mr. Wilson’s actions toward Jamin Wight and his victim teach us anything, they teach that Doug Wilson urged the policeman and the court to be gentle with the rapist and therefore harsh with the rapist’s victim. Further, they teach that Doug Wilson is gentle with wolves and therefore, according to his own axiom, he is harsh with the sheep.

Gary Greenfield resigned his household’s membership from the Kirk, telling Doug Wilson directly to his face: “You are a cult leader.” Since then he has learned the hard way that Mr. Wilson does not appreciate such candor. Gary left the Kirk; embraced Eastern Orthodoxy; and he continues to pay for his regrettable 30-year friendship with Doug Wilson.

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¹ Jamin Wight concurred with Gary. The police narrative states, “Wight told me he took an oath before god that the facts in the letter he wrote were true. Wight told me he agreed to ‘take his lumps’ if the matter was brought before law enforcement.”
Patricia Greenfield also made this point, writing, “Jamin was strongly encouraged to ‘take his lumps like a Christian man’ and in so doing, make a bad situation not nearly as bad as it could be. He was told not to slander or gossip about Natalie and our family and also to allow whatever punishment or results came about from the report of his crime to be used to rescue him from his devious sexual ways and hopefully make him a productive member of society one day. He wholeheartedly agreed with this and ‘appeared’ to be broken and contrite, humbled.”
² Likewise, Patricia Greenfield recognized Jamin Wight’s true nature, writing, “. . . hopefully help stop his [Jamin Wight’s] apparent devious, sexual predatory path.”