Over the past several years, I have watched with dismay as The Episcopal Church and other denominations and faith traditions discuss the sharing of information about abusers. It seems to me that this should be a simple thing: If you are clergy and engage in any sort of abuse, people need to know. Churches need to know. Parishioners… Read More »
Editor: The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) is one of the largest denominations in the United States. With more than 4 million members, it is more than twice the size of The Episcopal Church (TEC). The two churches have been in full communion since 1999. But ELCA and share more than just the ties of being in… Read More »
Too many Christians, including church officials, don’t understand abuse or recognize it. Wade Mullen does an excellent job of exploring the dynamics of spiritual abuse.
If my experience with Episcopal priest Bob Malm has taught me anything, it’s the importance of maintaining free speech. That includes standing up for fellow bloggers. So, before we go any further, let me say this to Greg Kelley: I’m publishing about you too. If you want to make Amy “highly regret” anything, I guess you’ll need to… Read More »
Despite coming from differing faith traditions, DeDe Duncan-Probe and Blase Cupich understand abuse and how to heal.
Jules Woodson first appeared in the media roughly a year ago, when fellow blogger Dee Parsons, among others, covered her sexual abuse at the hands of her former youth pastor, Andy Savage. A teen at the time, Jules accepted a ride home from Andy, only to be coerced into a sexual encounter along a dark road. Since then,… Read More »
“When it comes to controlling human beings, there is no better instrument than lies. Because you see, humans live by beliefs. And beliefs can be manipulated. The power to manipulate beliefs is the only thing that counts.” Michael Ende link Over the weekend, I decided to Google church and pastoral abuse. Normally, we already have a situation in… Read More »
I have recently come across the work of an organisation that seeks to help promote peace, the Tim Parry Johnathan Ball Foundation for Peace. The names are those of the two boys who lost their lives in the terrorist bombing outrage in Warrington in 1993. This organisation recognises that working for peace needs to have three parts to… Read More »
Shannon MacVean-Brown, the newly elected bishop for the Episcopal Diocese of Vermont, recently spoke to National Public Radio (NPR) about the challenges facing The Episcopal Church (TEC) particularly in a region where relatively few attend any church, and where TEC has a small footprint. Her comments on inclusion are noteworthy, particularly as they pertain to abuse. “If the… Read More »
Years ago, activists within The Episcopal Church began clamoring for the development of programs to prevent and address sexual misconduct. The move came at a time when the church was struggling to find ways to include those who historically had been marginalized on the basis of gender, national origin, sexual orientation, and other criteria. Many among those groups… Read More »
The following excellent observations on abuse of power and church is courtesy of the Rev. Richard Newnham, His blog is here. 1. I talk a lot about how the “business model” has usurped the “family model” of church governance…the “congregation” has replaced “employees” and they have as much say about how the church is run as the average… Read More »
Reprinted with permission. Stephen Parsons, a retired Anglican priest, publishes Survivingchurch.org, a blog dedicated to church abuse of every sort. After church on Sunday I took part in two conversations over coffee which indirectly touched on the church abuse issue. Neither mentioned in any way spiritual/sexual abuse, but each of them reminded me how much and for how… Read More »
I’ll be the first to admit: I’ve often been no fan of interim ministries. Why? Because these interregnums are too often periods of turmoil and confusion, in which churches and their members are left to flounder, while giving and membership collapse. But when understood and done correctly, interim ministry is a vital step towards congregational health. Part of… Read More »
Ed: Please consider donating to Phil’s GoFundMe effort. Tenth Presbyterian in Philadelphia, affiliated with the Presbyterian Church of America, a conservative neo-Calvinist denomination, is again trying to silence a whistleblower. Specifically, church officials have filed suit against former member and deacon Phil Snyder, who has repeatedly spoken out about allegations of sexual misconduct involving the church. Before we… Read More »
