Child abuse can be devastating and cause long-term damage. The Christian* Church should lead on this important issue…not ignore it, not cover it over, not make excuses for it.
G.R.A.C.E. blog, an online forum dedicated to a “Godly Response to Abuse in the Christian Environment”, has sponsored a petition page in an effort to collect signatures from professing Christians and Christian Leaders to endorse and promote a strong statement against child abuse in the Christian* Church at large.
“Recent allegations of sexual abuse and cover-up within a well known international ministry and subsequent public statements by several evangelical leaders have angered and distressed many, both inside and outside of the Church. These events expose the troubling reality that, far too often, the Church’s instincts are no different than from those of many other institutions, responding to such allegations by moving to protect her structures rather than her children. This is a longstanding problem in the Christian world, and we are deeply grieved by the failures of the American and global Church in responding to the issue of sexual abuse. We do not just believe we should do better; as those who claim the name of Jesus and the cause of the Gospel, we are convinced we must do better. In the hope that a time is coming when Christian leaders respond to all sexual abuse with outrage and courage, we offer this confession and declare the Good News of Jesus on behalf of the abused, ignored and forgotten. Through the media we have been confronted with perpetual reports of grievous sexual abuse and its cover-up. Institutions ranging from the Catholic Church, various Protestant churches and missionary organizations, Penn State, Yeshiva University High School, the Boy Scouts, and all branches of our military have been rocked by allegations of abuse and of complicity in silencing the victims. And while many evangelical leaders have eagerly responded with outrage to those public scandals, we must now acknowledge long-silenced victims who are speaking out about sexual abuse in evangelical Christian institutions: schools, mission fields and churches, large and small. And we must confess we have done far too little to hear and help them. Holocaust survivor and author, Elie Weisel, once said, “Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim…silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.” –G.R.A.C.E. Blog
Link to full article here: http://netgrace.org/a-public-statement-concerning-sexual-abuse-in-the-church-of-jesus-christ/
I encourage you to sign the online Petition here: http://www.thepetitionsite.com/455/791/827/a-public-statement-concerning-sexual-abuse-in-the-church-of-jesus-christ/
This is a good public statement, IMO. I think it’s important to include physical abuse as well as sexual. Physical abuse is very damaging and evil as well.
“Why is signing this important?”
Well, why is taking a stand or expressing your opinion about anything important? It’s important because it can help in changing public opinion, attitudes and subsequent actions in the so-called Christian* Church. Change starts with expressing opinions and making rhetorical statements and taking moral/ethical stands. Awareness that there is a Problem is the first step in addressing the Problem.
The so-called Christian* Church seems more angry and willing to scream and yell about what other consenting legal adults do in their bedrooms…than the abuses that happen every day to children in Church families.
Fundamentalists like Mohler, Dever, Piper, Duncan from the Reformed Camp…and Fundamentalists like Rosales from Camp Calvary Chapel…have no problem speaking extensively about the evils of Gay Marriage. They blog about it, speak about it are quoted in the media about it. Where are they with regards to the much more serious and non-debatable issue like Child Abuse? Silent as church rats…unless it’s defending a pastor friend of theirs.
Two same-sex adults getting it on in the privacy of their own homes is straining the gnat (and debatable)…while physically and sexually abusing children is swallowing the camel. Pastors, Church Leaders, Denominations, Non-Denominations…address the child abuse issues that are rampant in your ranks (physical and sexual) with more passion than what you believe is a moral issue like homosexuality. Until you speak against child abuse with the same vigor and urgency, STFU about homosexuality. (Yes, the F stands for what you think it stands for).
If you don’t care about signing the petition, then why are you on this blog and who will care?
