Healing the Wounds of Sexual Abuse: Reading the Bible with Survivors
()
About this ebook
Elaine A. Heath
Elaine A. Heath is a theologian whose work is interdisciplinary, integrating pastoral, biblical, and spiritual theology in ways that bridge the gap between academy, church, and world. Her current research interests focus on community as a means of healing trauma, emergent forms of Christianity, and alternative forms of theological education for the church in rapidly changing contexts. Heath is the author of numerous books and articles, the most recent of which is Healing the Wounds of Sexual Abuse: Reading the Bible with Survivors (2019), a republication with updates of a previous volume: We Were the Least of These: Reading the Bible with Survivors of Sexual Abuse (2011). She also recently served as general editor of the Holy Living series.
Read more from Elaine A. Heath
The Mystic Way of Evangelism: A Contemplative Vision for Christian Outreach Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Five Means of Grace: Experience God's Love the Wesleyan Way Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Five Means of Grace: Leader Guide: Experience God's Love the Wesleyan Way Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Healing Practice of Celebration Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Gospel according to Twilight: Women, Sex, and God Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Learning from the Least: Reflections on a Journey in Mission with Palestinian Christians Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Related to Healing the Wounds of Sexual Abuse
Related ebooks
Healing the Wounded Heart: The Heartache of Sexual Abuse and the Hope of Transformation Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5On the Threshold of Hope Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Good News for Victims of Rape Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Rid of My Disgrace: Hope and Healing for Victims of Sexual Assault Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5We Too: How the Church Can Respond Redemptively to the Sexual Abuse Crisis Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Trauma-Sensitive Theology: Thinking Theologically in the Era of Trauma Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsQuenched: Discovering God's Abundant Grace for Women Struggling with Pornography and Sexual Shame Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Courage to Heal: A Guide for Women Survivors of Child Sexual Abuse Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsIs It My Fault?: Hope and Healing for Those Suffering Domestic Violence. Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Leaving Silence: Sexualized Violence, the Bible, and Standing with Survivors Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Heart Of A Healer: Trauma-Informed Biblical Counseling Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMy Body Is Not a Prayer Request: Disability Justice in the Church Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Fully Known: An Invitation to True Intimacy with God Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Helping Victims of Sexual Abuse: A Sensitive Biblical Guide for Counselors, Victims, and Families Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Bitter Fruit: Dysfunction and Abuse in the Local Church Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Hush: Moving From Silence to Healing After Childhood Sexual Abuse Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5His History, Her Story: A Survival Guide for Spouses of Male Survivors of Sexual Abuse and Trauma, 2nd Edition Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBreathe: Finding Freedom to Thrive in Relationships After Childhood Sexual Abuse Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Becoming a Church that Cares Well for the Abused Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5One Face: Shed the Mask, Own Your Values, and Lead Wisely Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSecret Freedom: How to Fly Again and Gain Freedom from Keeping Secrets Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHealing the Wounded Heart Workbook: The Heartache of Sexual Abuse and the Hope of Transformation Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Wounded Heart: Hope for Adult Victims of Childhood Sexual Abuse Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Loves God Likes Girls: A Memior Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Healing Together: A Guide to Supporting Sexual Abuse Survivors Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Let's Talk About Doubt: A Story of Doubt, Faith and Life in Between Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHope, Healing, and Help for Survivors of Sexual Abuse: A Faith-Based Journey to Healing Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHealing the Ravaged Soul: Tending the Spiritual Wounds of Child Sexual Abuse Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsIt's Not Just You: Freeing Women to Talk about Sexual Sin and Fight It Well Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Finding Forgiveness in God's Word: A journey of hope and redemption. Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Christianity For You
The Holy Bible (World English Bible, Easy Navigation) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Good Girl's Guide to Great Sex: Creating a Marriage That's Both Holy and Hot Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Book of Enoch Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The 5 Love Languages: The Secret to Love that Lasts Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Purpose Driven Life: What on Earth Am I Here For? Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Boundaries Updated and Expanded Edition: When to Say Yes, How to Say No To Take Control of Your Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership: Follow Them and People Will Follow You Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Bible Recap: A One-Year Guide to Reading and Understanding the Entire Bible Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Screwtape Letters Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Don't Give the Enemy a Seat at Your Table: It's Time to Win the Battle of Your Mind... Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Anxious for Nothing: Finding Calm in a Chaotic World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Winning the War in Your Mind: Change Your Thinking, Change Your Life Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Mere Christianity Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Present Over Perfect: Leaving Behind Frantic for a Simpler, More Soulful Way of Living Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Great Sex Rescue: The Lies You've Been Taught and How to Recover What God Intended Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Unseen Realm: Recovering the Supernatural Worldview of the Bible Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Evidence That Demands a Verdict: Life-Changing Truth for a Skeptical World Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Law of Connection: Lesson 10 from The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Boundaries Workbook: When to Say Yes, How to Say No to Take Control of Your Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Story: The Bible as One Continuing Story of God and His People Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Wild at Heart Expanded Edition: Discovering the Secret of a Man's Soul Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Grief Observed Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I Guess I Haven't Learned That Yet: Discovering New Ways of Living When the Old Ways Stop Working Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Four Loves Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Girl, Wash Your Face: Stop Believing the Lies About Who You Are so You Can Become Who You Were Meant to Be Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5I'll Start Again Monday: Break the Cycle of Unhealthy Eating Habits with Lasting Spiritual Satisfaction Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Good Boundaries and Goodbyes: Loving Others Without Losing the Best of Who You Are Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5
Reviews for Healing the Wounds of Sexual Abuse
0 ratings0 reviews
Book preview
Healing the Wounds of Sexual Abuse - Elaine A. Heath
Elaine Heath draws deeply from Scripture and her own experience as a Christ follower, friend, pastor, and teacher, gifting us with this remarkable resource for healing the wounds of sexual abuse. She is a courageous companion into texts familiar and loved as well as texts avoided and ignored. The result is persistent and surprising good news: in every hard place in life, darkness is overcome by God’s light and love.
—Bishop Hope Morgan Ward, North Carolina Conference, United Methodist Church
"The journey of recovery from sexual abuse is both scarred and sacred. Elaine Heath boldly covers theological terrain ‘that is perilous, beautiful, wild, unutterably holy.’ Her development of atonement theory understands Jesus (Emmanuel) as ‘the least of these.’ Heath asserts that Jesus was a victim of sexual abuse as he was publicly stripped naked, humiliated, bound, violated, penetrated, and torn. She proceeds fearlessly into topics of toxic shame, original wounding, vulnerability, spiritual eros, and healing. As a survivor of sexual assault, Heath goes with the reader into this difficult reality. Joining with the vast numbers of women, men, girls, and boys who are survivors of sexual abuse, Elaine Heath offers her unique contribution to the #MeToo movement."
—Jeanne Stevenson-Moessner, Perkins School of Theology, Southern Methodist University
What an important and helpful book this is! We couldn’t ask for a better pastoral guide than Elaine Heath to probe deeply into the issue of sexual abuse and the healing so desperately needed by the abused and all of us. She helps us listen carefully to the Bible and see it as a path toward divine healing instead of as a weapon of oppression, bringing to bear the riches of our theological tradition along with a tender pastoral love. I thank God for this gift of a book.
—James Howell, Myers Park United Methodist Church, Charlotte, North Carolina
Written from the powerful perspective of ‘we, the survivors’ by a person who is deeply contemplative and able to ‘be angry but sin not’ regarding the evil of patriarchy and sexual abuse, this book educates, encourages, and empowers individuals and communities. Heath shows us how Jesus, the Bible, and Christian community can (and do) serve as sources of healing and wholeness for survivors (even those abused by people in the church). This book is for everyone—churches, seminaries, small groups, and individuals. It is for survivors themselves and those who journey with survivors. It should be required reading for every seminary, and it will be on my syllabus. Far from an exercise in theoretical possibilities or wishful thinking, it is an invitation into the sure reality of healing that awaits survivors and those who companion them.
—Jaime Clark-Soles, Perkins School of Theology, Southern Methodist University
This book should not need to be written, much less deserve another edition. That it is still needed is painfully evident when public leaders condone and even revel in abuse. This book is gracefully written by a teacher, pastor, and survivor. These are not simply academic issues to Heath but reflect the lived experiences of her and others, whose stories are boldly shared. Through biblical narratives from both the Old and New Testaments, our eyes are opened to the prevalence of abuse among us—survivors sit in every church, school, or business of any size. Heath shows through these scriptural stories and contemporary cultural artifacts, including films and books, how hurt can grow to hope and healing in the broken lives of survivors. Everyone needs to read and discuss this book, which opens our eyes to the needs of those sitting right beside us.
—David W. Baker, Ashland Theological Seminary
© 2011, 2019 by Elaine A. Heath
Published by Brazos Press
a division of Baker Publishing Group
PO Box 6287, Grand Rapids, MI 49516-6287
www.brazospress.com
Repackaged edition published 2019
Previously published in 2011 as We Were the Least of These: Reading the Bible with Survivors of Sexual Abuse
Ebook edition created 2019
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—for example, electronic, photocopy, recording—without the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC.
ISBN 978-1-4934-1834-3
Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations labeled NIV are from the Holy Bible, New International Version®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com. The NIV
and New International Version
are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™
For Morven
Contents
Cover i
Endorsements ii
Half Title Page iv
Title Page v
Copyright Page vi
Dedication vii
Acknowledgments xi
Introduction xiii
1. We Were the Least of These 1
2. Fig Leaves 13
3. Through the Wilderness 25
4. The Terrible Secret 39
5. Beauty Pageants 51
6. Prayers of Lament and Mercy 65
7. Are You My Mother? 75
8. Eunuchs 87
9. We Are Clean 101
10. About Judas and Mary 113
11. Emmanuel 123
12. In Remembrance of Me 137
13. Letting Go 151
14. Final Thoughts 165
Appendix A: The Healing Cloud 169
Appendix B: A Definition of Sexual Violence 185
Recommended Resources 187
Notes 193
Index 201
Back Cover 206
Acknowledgments
I would like to thank the many women and men who have trusted me with their stories and with whom I have journeyed in healing for the past twenty years. We have laughed, cried, and urged one another on through thick and thin. I especially want to thank my friend Dr. Morven Baker. Morven was the first person I ever heard speak about sexual abuse in a church. She has been God’s vessel of healing for countless survivors of sexual abuse and domestic violence. She is also a strong advocate for the LGBTQ community, especially adolescents and young adults who have been rejected by their families because of their sexuality.
I would also like to thank my sisters, Jeanine and Julie; my husband, Randy; and my colleagues Rebekah Miles, Jeanne Stevenson-Moessner, and Karen Baker-Fletcher for their continual support and wisdom as conversation partners during the writing of this book. I am indebted to my friends for their tireless intercessory prayer, especially Sherry.
Finally, I am grateful to my editors at Brazos Press, who are kind, patient, insightful, and always encouraging.
Introduction
Me too.
Coined in 2006 by Tarana Burke, this phrase designated the vast community of women and girls who are survivors of sexual assault.1 On October 5, 2017, celebrity Ashley Judd accused media giant Harvey Weinstein of sexual harassment in a New York Times piece that launched what became the #MeToo movement.2 One by one, famous actors, industry leaders, and megachurch leaders fell as women told their stories of harassment and rape. Thousands of women posted me too
on their Facebook pages. In a way no one could have predicted, an avalanche of women (and men) told their stories on social media. The suffocating silence of shame had been broken.
I am one of the women who posted me too
on social media. While I did not want to go into detail about the harmful events of my life, like so many others who posted, I wanted to declare publicly that shame, silence, and violence will not have the last word. Healing is possible. A beautiful future is possible for people like us. Moreover, many of us have wisdom and discernment that emerge from our wounds as they heal. We have God-given, powerful insight that the church needs.
My healing from abuse has been deeply embedded in my vocational journey as a theologian, pastor, and spiritual companion to others. Because I had the privilege of studying in diverse theological streams—evangelical, mainline Protestant, and Catholic—I gradually discovered many treasures from all these traditions that helped to open the Bible’s wealth of healing wisdom to me. Over the years as I have served in ministry with other survivors, I have witnessed the healing power of the Bible in their lives too.
This book is really grounded in two commitments: first, that the Bible can be a powerful source of healing for survivors of abuse, and second, that survivors who are healing have essential theological wisdom that the whole church needs in order to be the people God has called us to be in this world.
The process of healing from abuse is different for every survivor. While there are thresholds of healing that are common to survivors, every path to wholeness is unique. In this book we will consider several passages from the Bible that have proven to be profoundly healing for myself and other survivors with whom I have journeyed. Often in the chapters ahead I refer to us survivors
and how we
read a particular text. In doing so, I am referring to the actual survivors with whom I have experienced healing through that text. I do not presume to speak for every survivor everywhere or to think that my own experience or what I have written is the only way people can heal.
To protect the privacy of persons involved, I have changed names and identifying details of the stories and individuals in this book, while preserving the issues, theological insights, and healing that took place.
While I am deeply grateful for the healing power of the Bible in my life and the lives of many others, for some survivors the Bible will never be accessible. In some cases it is virtually impossible for survivors to participate in religious practices, go to church, or read the Bible because of the residual effects of their trauma. The barriers to meaningful interaction with the text are even higher if they have experienced ritual abuse that uses religious objects in the abuse, or if the offender was a pastor, priest, youth leader, or Sunday school teacher. In these situations survivors’ spiritual care involves the same respect, compassion, and encouragement any survivor needs. It is never appropriate to try to force someone to heal by using the Bible, prayer, church attendance, or other aspects of religion. We can be sure that in such cases the love of God is mediated with power as pastors, friends, and other caring persons incarnate the message of the gospel for the survivors, becoming the living text of love that survivors need. Love will heal many wounds that written words cannot. Indeed, without love the words of the Bible become noisy gongs
and clanging cymbals
(1 Cor. 13:1).
At the end of each chapter, I have included two sets of reflection questions, one set for survivors and another for companions of survivors, as well as a list of recommended activities. It is my hope and prayer that this book will help therapists, pastors, and survivors’ loved ones to understand how the Bible can help to heal the wounds of sexual abuse. Most of all I pray that this book will bring hope, healing, and freedom to my sisters and brothers, the least of these.
1
We Were the Least of These
It was the middle of summer and I was preaching through a series titled Men, Women, and God.
While the congregation was accepting of me as their pastor, they still tended to have patriarchal views about gender. Our church was in the Ohio River Valley, a region with unusually high rates of sexual abuse and domestic violence.1 My goal in the sermon series was to introduce the congregation to deeper levels of the healing and liberating power of the gospel. As part of the larger goal, I wanted them to experience a reading of several biblical texts that could help to prevent and heal the sexual abuse and domestic violence in our city.
On this Sunday, several weeks into the series and after I had established a biblical foundation for gender equality, I preached about the sin of childhood sexual abuse. I talked about its presence even among Christians, its relationship to patriarchy, and how the church could help to prevent and heal this form of violence. My biblical text was the story of the woman at the well in John 4. The congregation was unusually quiet, listening intently as I preached about the woman’s worth in God’s eyes and how her series of rejections as an adult could very well have been the outcome of the wounds of sexual abuse. Certain aspects of her adult life, I said, are consistent with what we see in survivors of childhood sexual abuse. Instead of looking at her story as just one more example of an immoral woman, what if we thought about the kinds of childhood experiences that can move a person toward this much chaos as an adult? This familiar story from the Gospels was a way to ease into a very difficult subject as we considered some of the consequences of childhood sexual abuse for adult survivors. As I spoke of the struggle survivors sometimes have with perfectionism and anxiety, and other consequences of sexual abuse, I noticed several people had tears in their eyes.
Bringing the message to a close, I briefly mentioned the systemic layers of oppression that faced this woman and further isolated her from her own people and religious community. In short, I was linking the sin of childhood sexual abuse to the larger systemic issue of patriarchy. The good news, I said, is that this unnamed woman became the first evangelist. Jesus saw beyond the surface of her dysfunctional relationships to the misery of her life. More than that, he saw the person she could become. Jesus trusted her, wanted to drink from her cup, was willing to be seen talking with her. Jesus did not shame her. When Jesus met her, he saw someone who wanted to be a true worshiper. This woman was not doomed to live in the shadow of her abuse forever. Because of Jesus, she found her own voice and with it led others to the one who set her free.
After the benediction, I followed custom and greeted people as they were leaving the church. An older woman, Laura, lingered at the edge of the sanctuary. Her husband, Marty, had already gone out to the car. They were usually there on Sundays but kept to themselves and rarely came to fellowship events. I always thought their reticence was because they were new in town, having moved there just a year before I did. When we passed the peace, Laura stood still instead of moving into the aisle. She stared ahead and greeted others only if they first spoke to her. Marty was a little more outgoing, but not much. They were both tall and dignified. Nearly eighty, Laura was still strikingly beautiful, with her shoulder-length white hair and stylish clothing.
When the last person had left the sanctuary, Laura approached. Taking my hand, she looked into my eyes and was silent, searching for the right words. Finally she spoke. Pastor, what you preached about really touched me. For the first time in my life—and I have been going to church my entire life—I actually understood every word of the sermon.
Thank you, Laura!
I said, surprised by her comments because she had been listening to my sermons for nearly two years. Why would she understand this sermon and not the others? There was something more that she seemed to want to say, so I waited.
With no change in facial expression or tone of voice, Laura matter-of-factly continued, My neighbor and his friend raped me. Two of them, together, one after the other. They were in high school. I was seven years old.
The words came out with no more emotion than if she were telling me what she had for dinner the night before. I hadn’t thought of it in a long time. Your sermon made me remember it.
The faintest glimmer of pain began to show in her eyes. I’ve never told anyone before,
she whispered. That sermon marked the beginning of Laura’s healing.
Today Laura experiences the love of God, laughs freely, and participates in Bible studies and outings with friends. She and Marty have become favorites of many of the younger adults at the church, who are often dinner guests at the couple’s home. Although she is still reserved by nature, Laura has definitely found her voice, and she is a blessing to everyone around her. She is compassionate, a deep thinker, a joy to her friends.
Why Survivors Disconnect from the Church
As Laura explained in one of our many conversations after the disclosure of her abuse, prior to the advent of her healing, she had never been able to experience prayer or