Editing Two by Twos (section)

=== Into the 21st century; abuse cases ===
[[File:Two by Two Convention Hall.jpg|thumb|upright|Two by Two convention hall in [[Saginaw, Oregon]], in 2018]]
Divisions, both doctrinal and organizational, within the group have formed throughout its history and continue as ongoing challenges.{{sfn|Kropp-Ehrig|2022|pp=260–261, 483–494}}

Until the mid 1980s, notes regarding the Two by Twos had appeared infrequently in religious journals and sociological works, with some writers assuming that the church had greatly declined, with nothing published regarding it.{{sfn|Jackson|Loetscher|1977|p=298}}{{sfn|Borhek|Curtis|1979|p=69}} In 1982, the publication of ''The Secret Sect'' was followed by press reports and public statements by former members.{{sfn|Daniel|1993|p=176}}{{sfn|Johnson|1995|p=43}} Other books and news coverage dealing with the church appeared in the following decades and increased awareness of the church and its practices. With the exposure of regional differences and the appearance of dissent, a loosening of a few strict standards demanded of members has been observed in some areas.{{sfn|Kropp-Ehrig|2022|pp=325, 338}}{{sfn|Cimino|July–August 1999|p=3}} A marked decline in membership has occurred over recent decades, coinciding with availability of information on the Internet and elsewhere.{{sfn|Kropp-Ehrig|2022|pp=306, 327, 496–497}}

In April 2019, the Australian current affairs television show ''[[60 Minutes (Australian TV program)|60 Minutes]]'' interviewed child sex abuse victims of Australian ministers.{{sfn|60 Minutes|2019}}{{sfn|Kropp-Ehrig|2022|pp=416–417}} On 20 March 2023, a letter was released from overseer Doyle S. Smith, (the "Dean Letter") informing members of the discovery of predatory and sexually abusive behavior by recently deceased worker and overseer Dean Bruer.{{sfn|Wings for Truth|2024a}} Since the release of the Dean Letter, other allegations of sexual abuse and child sexual abused have been reported within the church from all over the world, and former minister Robert Corfield admitted that he had sexually abused a boy in [[Saskatchewan]], Canada, over several years in the 1980s.{{sfn|BBC|2024a}}{{sfn|CBC|2024a}} Numbers of perpetrators have been estimated to number in the hundreds, with several thousand victims identified.{{sfn|York News-Times|7 September 2024}} In the United States, the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation]] (FBI) opened an investigation in 2024.{{sfn|BBC|2024b}}{{sfn|BBC|2025a}}

In 2023, the Two by Twos' Australasian overseers had issued two letters to members acknowledging incidents of abuse overseas, condemning child abuse and encouraging victims to report abuse to the police. The overseers also announced they would establish an anonymous advisory group to develop child-safe policies and manage the group's response to historical child sexual abuse. In other areas, calls for adoption of an official policy have been rejected or ignored.{{sfn|York News-Times|7 September 2024}} In May 2024, the group's Australasian leaders launched a website with information about their response to historical child sexual abuse and a written apology to victims. Former abuse victims and victim advocate Jillian Hishon have criticized the group's response for lacking impartiality and accountability.{{sfn|RNZ|2024b}}{{sfn|York News-Times|7 September 2024}}

In June 2024, the [[American Broadcasting Company]] television news program ''[[Nightline]]'' aired a segment on child sexual abuse cases across the United States. An expanded report aired concurrently on season 2 of the [[Hulu]] docuseries ''Impact X Nightline''.{{sfn|ABC Nightline|2024}}

In September 2024, [[Radio New Zealand]] reported that [[New Zealand Police]] were assisting the FBI investigation by investigating at least one former New Zealand minister for historical abuse. A former minister William Stephen Easton admitted 55 child sex abuse charges over three decades against young boys. The church has about 2,500 members and 60 ministers in New Zealand.{{sfn|RNZ|2025a}} Peter Lineham of Massey University has been researching the group since the 1970s and said that it had been active in New Zealand for 120 years.{{sfn|RNZ|2024a}} 

An American former elder of the church, Raymond Zwiefelhofer, was sentenced to 120 years in prison in November, 2024, for 10 counts of possessing child sexual abuse material.{{efn-ua|An ABC News report stated: "'In total, there were 87 files that were determined to be child sexual abuse material or sometimes known as child pornography,' Catherine Fu, a Maricopa Deputy County Attorney, told ABC News. 'The 10 charged files were a combination of photos and videos, and they were all depicting children under the age of 15 engaged in either exploitive exhibition or sexual conduct.' Zwiefelhofer, 61, maintains his innocence."{{harv|ABC|2024b}}.}} A report published by the [[BBC]] in early 2025 covered allegations of women who were pressured into giving up their children for adoption.{{sfn|BBC|2025a}}