Here are a few steps your church can take.
- Recognize that people in your church have experienced the trauma of abuse. One in three women and one in four men have experienced sexual violence involving physical contact at some point in their lives.[1] Even if the abuse did not occur in your context, the effects are long-lasting. The way you speak about abuse and even sex can either be healing or can renew old wounds. Seek to understand the experiences of survivors and allow that understanding to inform your words and actions.
- Form a team to care well. Identify men and women in your church who can serve on a team committed to protecting and caring for the children and adults in your care. Pastors, elders, women’s ministry leaders, youth leaders, professional counselors, medical professionals, and attorneys are all examples of people who may need to be included on a team. Go through the Caring Well Challenge with your team to ensure you are doing all you can to guard against abuse and that you are prepared to handle any disclosure of abuse with compassion and action.
- Call it what it is. Abuse is sin, but it’s also a crime. Churches will often try to minimize the negative perceptions around a situation by using language like “moral failure,” “lapse in judgment,” or “sexual impropriety.” None of these terms recognize that abuse is an act against another human being. The way we speak about it signals to survivors whether they are valued and signals to potential perpetrators whether they will be prosecuted.
- Value people above the institution. When abuse comes to light, some churches and leaders are more concerned with protecting the reputation of their ministry and the church than they are with protecting survivors of sexual abuse and preventing future victims. When abuse is disclosed within our congregations, immediate action must be taken to protect the victim and stop the abuse. The survivor must be our top priority. This could mean loss of membership and a decrease in ministry opportunities, but our fellowship with God requires us to walk in the light and keep nothing hidden in darkness (1 John 1).
It is always devastating to hear about another case of abuse in the news, especially one that involves professing Christians. But it does not have to be this way. Now is the time to take steps to love and protect those in our care.
[1] CDC, “Preventing Sexual Violence,” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, April 1, 2019, http://www.cdc.gov/features/sexualviolence/
Catherine Parks is the author of four books, including Real and Empowered. She serves as an editor for the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission’s Human Dignity channel. Palmer Williams is an attorney specializing in human dignity issues and serves as a legal and policy advisor for the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission.
