Resources
Reporting Essentials | GRACE Live Conversations
A deeper look into the ins and outs of reporting abuse. A recorded conversation with GRACE's own Mike Sloan, Amy Stier, and special guest, Eli Molina. We answer questions such as: What is a mandated reporter? What does reasonable suspicion mean? Where do you report abuse? Does a church need to investigate?
Failure to Act
Many reasons exist why people fail to intervene in abuse situations. Here are a few of them.
Walls of Silence: Protecting the Institution Over the Individual
A culture of ministry that is centered upon the institution will go to great lengths to protect its reputation, compromising the value and protection of the vulnerable.
Resist & Report: The Temptation to Investigate
Four reasons faith organizations should resist investigating allegations before reporting to authorities.
Distorting the Grace of God and the Five Stops
While offenders should receive the love and forgiveness of Jesus, we must realize that forgiveness and love do not eliminate the consequences of the sin.
Insuring Sin
Essay by Joey Mangano on the relationship between sexual abuse and insurance companies.
Locked in Cells of Silence by Disbelief and Shame
Why do so many victims remain silent? In over twenty years of confronting abuse, Boz Tchividjian shares what he has learned about the silence that imprisons many survivors.
Catching American Sex Offenders Overseas
A Proposal for a Federal International Mandated Reporting Law
“Righteous” Reputations of Churches that Do Not Care
Why do so many churches fail to do the right thing when they learn that one of their own has been accused of sexual abuse? All too often it’s because the victimized are repeatedly overshadowed by the need to protect a “righteous” reputation.
Remaining Silent About Suspected Abuse: 5 Common Fears
In the past 20 years, I have come across many situations where folks have found themselves conflicted about whether to say something after observing unsettling behavior between an adult and a child. Unfortunately, too many have decided it’s best to remain silent.
Hillsong Church: Abuse Unreported, Perpetrator Rewarded
Examining the crisis of culpability at Hillsong Church when pastor Brian Houston failed to report his predator father, Frank Houston, to authorities.
Shatter the Silence: A Call to the Black Church to Protect Our Children
Dr. Thema Bryant-Davis explains how the Black church can directly confront child abuse, beginning within its own community.
A Christian Publisher Speaks Up on Child Sexual Abuse
Reflecting on an editorial by WORLD Magazine columnist Warren Cole Smith and how it exemplifies responding well in a world rife with evil and darkness.
Christians and the Struggle to Report Child Abuse
We should all understand one important truth: child sexual abuse is both a sin and a serious crime—a crie that should always be reported.
Endangering Children by Looking Away
In the past years, most of us have become increasingly aware of how common it is for pastors and others within faith communities to allow known or suspected sex offenders to have access to children. Sometimes this is fueled by ignorance, and other times it is fueled by a desire to place institutional “needs” over the value of a child’s soul.
The High Cost of Negligence
WORLD Magazine Article by Jamie Dean on the cost of negligence by church leaders.
Where Are the Voices?
Boz Tchividjian reflects on the culture of silence and protectionism in American evangelicalism.
