The daughter of Ravi Zacharias has apologized for not believing the victims of her late father's sexual misconduct and abuse.
Sarah Davis, CEO of RZIM, the apologetics ministry founded by Zacharias, said in a video message that she was "grieved" by her initial response to the allegations.
"I made serious errors that only furthered deep wounds," she said.
"I believed this man, my father, whom I loved and trusted more than anyone else, could not have done these things ... But I was wrong.
"And it's been said that it's easier to be fooled than to convince someone that they've been fooled, and now I know that more than ever to be true."
She continued, "When I was first presented with the evidence that the allegations were true it quaked my very being. In fact, I still replay memories over and over in my head: how could this make sense with the man I knew and what we now know to be true?"
Canadian woman Lori Anne Thompson was sued by Zacharias when she alleged back in 2017 that they had an online sexual relationship.
In 2020, months after Zacharias' death from cancer, former massage therapists at a spa he co-owned came forward with accounts of sexual abuse.
At the time, their allegations were dismissed by RZIM, but an independent report by the law firm Miller and Martin released earlier this year corroborated their accounts. It also found that the RZIM leadership had failed to hold Zacharias accountable.
In the video, Davis apologized to the women and said, "I think of you every single day."
She added that she wanted to "right the wrongs where possible."
"I am utterly devastated. I am sorry I did not see you. I am sorry that you were made powerless and rendered voiceless," she said.
She went on to say that RZIM wanted to get back to preaching the Gospel but "first, we must engage in this very important ministry—to acknowledge, to respond to, and to address how these things could have happened at RZIM."
She acknowledged that people were feeling "angry", "hurt" and "betrayed" by the revelations.
"I'm profoundly grieved by this and deeply sorry," she said, adding that she was also sorry that RZIM had "not represented Christ" to the watching world.
RZIM is currently the subject of an ongoing independent review which Davis said she hoped would help the organization better understand abuse and how to prevent it.
"We will learn from our errors and have better forms of accountability, and we pray that others may also be able to learn through our mistakes," she said.
She ended by speaking of the pain of the "hidden" nature of her father's sins and the fact they were never confessed, as she appealed to others committing similar sins to repent.
"As someone who has received God's forgiveness, and received the forgiveness of others, and as someone who has been deeply wronged, I am asking you to have the courage to give your victims the justice and dignity of acknowledging the truth," she said.
