The minister and trauma psychologist bridging the worlds of spirituality and psychology
LOS ANGELES — The men's choir had just brought down the house with the gospel classic "Miracle Worker" when Thema Bryant danced up to the lectern at First AME Church in South L.A.
Rising to the full height of her slim, 5-foot-7 frame, the 49-year-old ordained minister and psychologist smiled wide at the congregation before launching into her sermon — part preacherly rapture, part group therapy.
She was wearing purple, she said, in honor of it being the last Sunday of Domestic Violence Awareness Month. She praised God for the survivors in the house and for those who grew up witnessing domestic violence and were committed to breaking the cycle. Then she made the unusual move of thanking the Almighty for the former offenders in the pews — keyword "former" — who were making a different choice because, as she reminded the congregation, domestic violence is a choice.
"We're all in here," she said, her call-and-response cadences growing stronger as the parishioners called out affirmations of "C'mon now!"
"Victims, survivors, bystanders and former offenders, we're all in here. And it's only when we get healed that our community will be well. Amen? Amen? Amen!"
The room had fallen silent when she began, but by the time she finished, the organ was pounding out invisible exclamation marks and the church rang with applause.
It was a tricky maneuver, this straddling of psychology and religion at a Sunday morning service at a venerable Black church. But Bryant, who lectures nationally and internationally on diversity, multiculturalism and
