Audio recording details Zion Lutheran fight over direction that led to pastor’s departure

Zion Lutheran Church’s Senior Pastor Caleb Williams, a prominent figure at Kerr County veterans’ events, resigned one day after the church’s secretary publicly read a series of serious accusations against him, including sexual assault and intimidation.

In a Facebook post, the church announced Williams’s resignation, and Jim Motheral, the church’s council president, confirmed to The Lead that Williams was no longer in his position.

On Sunday, Church Secretary Brittney Compton informed the entire congregation that Williams was under investigation for sexual assault. On Monday afternoon, the Kerrville Police Department acknowledged that a complaint had been filed against Williams but could not provide details about the ongoing investigation.

Audio from Zion Lutheran Church’s Dec. 29, 2024 meeting

The Lead obtained a copy of Compton’s comments, which were shared via email with the congregation. In her remarks, Compton claimed that Williams had exploited two “vulnerable women.”

“I want everyone to note that the council was made aware of these accusations months ago and chose to do nothing,” Compton wrote. “I do not take lightly bringing up these women’s abuse to you all. These are not just claims; I have personally seen the evidence.”

Compton stated that other congregation members knew about the issues surrounding Williams, but their concerns were ignored by the church. She suggested that the church council was planning to amend the church’s bylaws to grant the pastor more power.

“Standing here today is very difficult for me,” Compton said. “I love this church, this congregation, and I cared for him and his family. I’m sure you all know that. I am not angry or bitter; I am deeply concerned about the well-being of Zion and the integrity of our church. I truly feel that God has called me to do this.”

Compton also alleged that Williams had falsified his record to become a pastor.

“Caleb has asked me to withhold truths from staff, defend his actions, and protect his reputation at the expense of transparency and truth,” she said. “For months, I have struggled to reconcile what I was witnessing from my friend and the man we trusted to lead us spiritually. He poses a liability to this church, both financially and spiritually.”

The Lead received an audio recording of a meeting held on December 29, where Williams faced accusations of financial and sexual misconduct. In the recording, Compton is heard making accusations, while Williams calmly responds. During his remarks, he directed criticism toward Mercy Gate Ministries, a Kerr County-based organization that assists trafficked women.

“All of this has been looked at. Most of what she was discussing has been brought up for years,” Williams said. “Regarding the supposed sexual matters, that is not true. It comes from a group called Mercy Gate, which deals with sex traffickers whom I have spoken out against. They themselves spiritually harm young girls, making them pay significant amounts of money to live with three or four people in a house. So, they are upset with that, and I’m sure they are. But, at the end of the day, I’m sure you’ve all seen me; you know me. There are many accusations that I’ve stolen money from the Children’s Center, accusations that I have covered up abuse.”

During her remarks, Compton reiterated that Williams took advantage of two “vulnerable women.” Williams acknowledged the likelihood of an investigation but suggested that nothing would come of it.

“You know, every time there’s an accusation that comes up and then gets refuted, another one surfaces,” Williams said. “Now, they are using some incredibly damaging things that are not true. And, as I said, I would appreciate if people would come to me directly.”

The conflict over Williams’s leadership had been brewing for some time, and later in the meeting, another attendee expressed concern about $25,000 the church spent on legal fees without clarity on what those fees covered.

Williams resigned from his position on Monday, and the church quickly moved to appoint John Onsott as the interim senior pastor.

Past court records corroborated Compton’s allegation of a stolen valor charge against Williams a decade ago and his prosecution for stealing money from a National Guard veterans group. In 2015, Williams faced felony charges for falsifying a Department of Motor Vehicles document to falsely claim he was a Purple Heart recipient, meaning he had suffered combat wounds. He pleaded guilty to those charges and received deferred adjudication.

As a result of this conviction, Williams was required to surrender a previous law enforcement certification from the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement.

Additionally, during his time as the Texas National Guard Family Support Foundation grant manager, a supervisor accused Williams of using foundation funds to pay back child support in 2015. He was also involved in a bitter defamation lawsuit filed against him by a former executive director of the National Guard Association of Texas, which he ultimately settled out of court.