“There is an abhorrent lack of knowledge for the damage and devastation that sexual assault brings…”
— Rachael Denhollander
The walls of our institutions are held up by the framework of patriarchy and white supremacy.
Worst of all is that it’s hidden beneath the guise of what has been mislabeled as “sound theology.”
Best of all, change is happening. It’s not just imminent; it’s right now.
For Rachael Denhollander, and Abuse Victims, The Cost of Following Jesus is Apparently Being Silenced, Exiled and then Isolated by His “Followers”…
But, in order to change something you usually need to acknowledge that thing that needs to be changed. The church is a swamp. It’s a figurative cesspool of toxicity. But, it’s so far reached a point of which, even the most conservative of us wouldn’t say the church is “safe,” let alone a refuge for the broken to go and feel whole once again.
If you’re wondering what I’m even talking about and you’re feeling the urge to say I’m being anecdotal, hyperbolic, “irrational”, etc. off the top of my head, here’s a list of ministries that have been accused of alleged abuses:
Jesus People USA, Sovereign Grace Ministries, Vision Forum, The Bill Gothard Ministry, Bob Jones University, Patrick Henry College, Pensacola Christian College, etc.
But, also, just because I know that won’t be enough, here’s a list of places major abuse scandals had been uncovered by the Boston Globe (probably because there too many names to list):
It’s just terrifyingly disheartening when the “church” that should, otherwise, be on the forefront of leading this change is, seemingly (9 out of 10 times), the very last to even give two sh*ts about reports of abuse.
To be clear, I’m talking about any form of abuse here…