You might think that it would be easy to define abuse but it turns out to be quite complicated. Abuse has many forms. Sometimes the abuser intends to do harm, sometimes not. Sometimes the harm done is obvious, sometimes not. Sometimes even the person who is being harmed may not be convinced that what happened is abuse. How do you sort out such a complicated situation? Well, not easily. Here we can … [Read more...] about What is Abuse?
Search Results for: spiritual abuse
Clerical Abuse
Because this site is primarily for clergy and other religious professionals it is particularly important to emphasize that clergy are at elevated risk for becoming perpetrators of some kinds of abuse -- and also at elevated risk for becoming victims of some other kinds of abuse. Religious Professionals as Abusers While public focus is generally limited to sexual abuse, there are other kinds … [Read more...] about Clerical Abuse
A Relational Model
The integrative model for recovery from abuse assumes that 'the problem' is primarily inside the abused person. Makes sense. This assumption underlies most therapeutic strategies for recovery from abuse. But suppose you started with the assumption that 'the problem' is not primarily inside anybody but rather 'between' people? Suppose the problem was most fundamentally a relational problem? You … [Read more...] about A Relational Model
Abuse in Adolescence
The abuse of adolescents is different from the abuse of either children or adults. Some kinds of abuse become more difficult to recognize. There are probably a variety of reasons for this including: a) risk taking behaviors subsequent to abuse may be seen as developmentally normal, b) adolescents tend to be stigmatized as victimizers rather than as victims, c) developmental changes are … [Read more...] about Abuse in Adolescence
Impact on Abused Persons
How the experience of abuse impacts an abused person is very difficult to predict. Severity It seems self-evident that some abuse is more severe than others -- but there is no way to be precise about this and the business of comparing severity of trauma is notoriously risky. For example, it seems self evident that both frequency of abuse and intensity of abuse contribute to the … [Read more...] about Impact on Abused Persons
Recovery 101: Pastoral Care and Abuse
Most of the lectures in this course were part of a class entitled "Pastoral Care and Abuse" taught for many years at Fuller Theological Seminary by Dr. Dale Ryan. So what you will find here is the kind of material that might be helpful to pastors-in-training. Expect it to feel fairly protestant and generally evangelical (or post-evangelical, semi-evangelical, quasi-evangelical) in tone -- if these … [Read more...] about Recovery 101: Pastoral Care and Abuse
Recovery from Spiritual Distress
by Dale and Juanita Ryan A few days after Steve first attended a support group for adult children of alcoholics, a powerful image came into his mind. "I saw myself in a large crowd of people. God was holding my hand. But suddenly, God's hand pulled away and I was lost in the crowd. I was separated from God, abandoned, completely alone." When Steve attempted to honestly face the needs in his … [Read more...] about Recovery from Spiritual Distress
N.T. Overview: Gospels
There are a number of themes in the gospel narratives that are relevant to recovery from abuse. Peace/Nonviolence The birth of Jesus takes place in a pervasively violent context. The Roman military occupies Palestine. Shortly after Jesus' birth Herod orders a mass execution of children. ((Matt 2:16-18)) In spite of this the message from God in the coming of Jesus is about peace: 13 Suddenly a … [Read more...] about N.T. Overview: Gospels
An Introduction to the Twelve Steps
by Dale and Juanita Ryan Welcome to Spiritual Kindergarten! It was Bill W., one of the founders of Alcoholics Anonymous, who first referred to the Twelve Steps as a "spiritual kindergarten." He was emphasizing that the Twelve Steps were designed to help us learn--and put into practice--the most basic spiritual truths. Spiritual Kindergarten is about the fundamentals of the spiritual life. It … [Read more...] about An Introduction to the Twelve Steps
About Abusers
The first thing to remember about people who abuse other people is that they do not look like abusers. You can't tell by looking. Abusers seem normal. Judith Herman summarizes this well: Little is known about the mind of the perpetrator. Since he is contemptuous of those who seek to understand him, he does not volunteer to be studied. Since he does not perceive that anything is wrong with him, … [Read more...] about About Abusers