UNITED STATES
Under Much Grace
It has been an interesting few weeks for the survivors of spiritual abuse and those who have suffered the “extra special” kind of spiritual abuse that comes with sexual advances made by clergy.
After years of suffering in silence and scorn, many have cause for hope. Bob Jones University reinstated the Godly Response to Abuse in the Christian Environment Group to complete their investigation of unreported assaults. And… Bill Gothard was placed on administrative leave by the board of his parachurch organization, the Institute in Basic Life Principles. These matters have even caught the attention of the secular press including the New York Times and the Washington Post.
It has been said of critics that people like me are dancing with glee over these new developments with Gothard in particular, as somehow it means that there will be no consequences for sinful activities. (I can’t connect any of those dots at all!) I wish to see the abusers come to justice so that restitution can be made to the survivors. And in many ways, that is impossible. It would be nice, however, if places like Sovereign Grace would at least pay for therapy to help their victims can recover. It would be something. It is a starting place. – But it makes me anything but happy. Part of me cringes, half anticipating that all of these efforts will result in no change at all, despite all of the work and the public scrutiny that the victims have suffered in the process. Or it may be change that no one will see tangibly in quite a long time. That’s often how these things work.
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