Mark Driscoll Resigns

At first I was glad, but I find myself now incredibly sad upon hearing that Mark Driscoll resigned.

I’m just as surprised and confused as to why I might feel sad about Driscoll resigning as you are. I mean it’s a good thing, right? For him, for his family, for Mars Hill, for the Church at large… Mark, Mars Hill, his counterparts, and of course the victims can now find healing, and can rest, and someday [hopefully] be restored!

This is all good…

The thing is, Mark Driscoll’s downfall was real. The repercussions of his actions are still impacting thousands. This “saga” wasn’t a movie, or an episode from our favorite television show, it was his families, his children’s, and his victims reality.

In this no one has won.

Driscoll quitting is not us, them, or him winning. As reality has it people are still very much hurting. This was a man forced to concede and relinquish his power because of a consistent abuse of this power. This is good news in that there can now be a a process of mourning, and hope for a new beginning, but before this new beginning there is a long path towards healing.

[Here’s an older post I wrote on this whole Driscoll saga]

Celebrating now would be premature. As someone who has faced trauma, and is currently still healing from trauma, revisiting trauma is terrifying. To step into the past with hope, but no guarantee, that you can then incorporate these events or occurrences into your present narrative, positively, it

When abuse happens it changes us. It destroys our sense of self, and our basic level of trust. Perhaps authoritarian men such as Driscoll are the reason why Millennials are leaving the Church in droves…

This is not a victory. This was and still is a tragedy…

The hope is that this tragedy will turn into a story of restoration and healing. Whether or not we’re public figures like Driscoll we will all face tragedy, we will all hurt somebody and be hurt by somebody, and in consequence we will all need love, compassion, and mercy. I hope that in this season Mark and his family, Mars Hill and their staff, or his victims and their peers will find just that.

That is it, that is all.

Read more here at Benjamin Corey’s blog.