Dr. John Fiedler, former pastor of the 15,000-member Highland Park United Methodist Church (HPUMC) in Dallas, was arrested in a massage parlor following a police raid. After he was arrested, he resigned in disgrace. Police responded to the business on Oct. 2, 2024. before his resignation, he worked as the executive minister at HPUMC, which is the largest Methodist church in the nation.

He was arrested in the Carrolton suburb of Dallas. However, according to a police report, “Defendant surrendered to the City of Carrollton Police Department at 7:00 AM on October 31, 2024, for a warrant in regard to the above-referenced matter. Defendant is currently in custody at the City of Carrollton Municipal Jail.” The report went on to say:  “Once Defendant surrendered on October 31, the Carrollton Police Department advised undersigned counsel that their department does not have the sufficient manpower to transport Defendant to the Collin County jail on October 31.”

Mark Lassiter, the pastor’s defense lawyer, asked the court to release his client on his own recognizance: “Defendant Fiedler has zero criminal history, he is 72 years of age and has been diagnosed with Dementia.” The Police mentioned that no drugs or alcohol were involved in this incident. The lawyer also spoke with a mental health professional to support their motion.

“Undersigned Counsel conferred with ADA Christina Skipper on October 31, 2024, and the State is in agreement to the issuance of a personal recognizance bond and release,” the document read.  Another heavily redacted legal document reported that the building where the pastor was found”was sold to another female who had priors for promotion of prostitution out of Oklahoma in relation to a massage establishment.”

Feidler was eventually released on a $1,000 bond. The court extended a writ of habeas corpus, ending the case. The pastor’s lawyers contest this decision. After this disgraceful event, the pastor retired from his position at HPUMC on Dec. 31, 2024. He had worked as a pastor since 2013 and an elder since the late ’90s. According to live streams posted to Facebook, he still works in some capacity at the church.

According to an archived version of the church webpage,  he was “Raised in Texas, Dr. John Fiedler attended high school at Houston Westchester and then earned a Bachelor of Arts degree at Knox College.” It explains how “Having sensed a call to ordained ministry, John entered Brite Divinity School (TCU) where he received the Master of Divinity degree and was ordained into the Central Texas Conference of the United Methodist Church.” It adds that, ” After twice serving as an associate minister, he than itinerated as pastor-in-charge to UMC churches in Lake Worth, Mansfield, and Hurst.”

“In 1997, he was sent to First UMC Dallas where he served as senior minister for 16 years leading that congregation into an Arts District renaissance. In 2013, he came to Highland Park United Methodist where he preached the 11:00 a.m. sanctuary service until he was chosen to direct the Mark Craig Leadership Network,” the report concludes. It is mentioned that ” John and his wife Sydney have three adult children and three grandchildren.”