Stewards of Children: You can stop child sexual abuse
by: Mark Kelly - Oct 2, 2007 - comments: 1
A sexual predator has discovered a place with unfettered access to large numbers of children, a place where he or she can come and go at will, with no mechanism in place to protect the children. Statistics have shown that over the years, this one sexual predator could assault as many as 400 children, traumatizing them for life.
There is a place like that in your community. You attend church there every Sunday.
Before you say, “That wouldn’t happen in our church,” talk with Carol Hogue of Charleston, S.C. In 2002, her 9-year-old son told his parents he was being sexually abused by the organist at the church where her husband was pastor.
“We were horrified,” she says. “We watched as our son, our family and our congregation had to deal with the effects of child sexual abuse up close and personal.”
You may not realize it, but you know a young person who has been molested. Pull together 10 kids from your youth group—four girls and six boys. One of those girls and one of those boys were sexually abused before the age of 18, most likely before they were 12. You and the other adults in your church don’t know about it because they don’t want to talk about it—almost a third of them will never tell anyone.
That’s why Lane Aspinwall believes the responsibility for preventing child sexual abuse should be placed squarely on adult shoulders.
“It is unrealistic to expect a 6-year-old to fend off sexual advances from an adult,” says Aspinwall, who works with Darkness to Light, a non-profit organization dedicated to reducing the incidence of child sexual abuse. “A 6-year-old can’t even recognize sexual advances for what they are. A 6-year-old has been taught to ‘mind’ adults who are authority figures.
“Adults are responsible for the safety of children,” he says. “We strap them into car seats; we walk them across busy streets; we ask them where they are going and who they will be with—all to keep them safe. Adults also should be responsible for protecting children from sexual abuse.”
That’s why Darkness to Light is training adults to prevent, recognize and react responsibly to child sexual abuse. The Charleston-based group has 725 facilitators who lead the 2.5 hour “Stewards of Children” training that helps adults understand the nature and impact of child sexual abuse and establish conditions to protect the children in their lives.
The training is built around the group’s booklet, “Seven Steps to Protecting Our Children,” which is available free of charge from their Web site, darkness2light.org. More than 1 million copies of the booklet have been distributed.
Cynthia Putman was so impressed by the Stewards of Children training that she incorporated it into her teacher education program at Charleston Southern University.
“I worked in the public schools for 30 years as a teacher, principal and special education director,” Putman says. “I have seen firsthand the trauma and damage that occurs to children who have been psychologically, physically and sexually abused. This fall will be the third semester I have led the training at CSU. As Christians, we should make the safety, care and nurturing of children one of our top priorities.”
The constant stream of stories in the news about crimes against children should be enough to mobilize churches to take action, says Jana Jackson, director of church and community ministries at Dallas Baptist Association and a Stewards of Children facilitator.
“In just this past week, families in our area experienced horrific acts of violence,” she says. “A mom was charged with setting her children on fire. A man was accused of killing his wife and step-sons. Our churches should be grieving over crimes against children and the brokenness of families in our city. We should be praying for the peace of our cities and seeking to be used as Jesus’ instrument for healing.”
Jackson believes Stewards of Children is an excellent tool for healing—and preventing—child sexual abuse. Information on the program will be available at the association’s annual meeting in October. In 2008, she plans on using it in a childcare providers’ workshop and to train summer missionaries and camp staff. Two workshops will focus on training pastors, and the association is collaborating with the Dallas Children’s Advocacy Center to provide facilitators for churches and community organizations that request training.
Too many church leaders don’t think child sexual abuse will happen in their ministries, and too few have policies and procedures in place to prevent it. Many church leaders don’t realize how often sexual abuse happens in their members’ homes and haven’t trained adult workers to recognize the signs of abuse and intervene.
That’s why Carol Hogue is so passionate about persuading churches in Charleston to get Stewards of Children training for their workers.
“Our journey was long and at times painful,” she says, “but we have seen victory. God has given us His grace, peace and wisdom. He also has given us healing, the ability to forgive and restoration.
“As churches, we minister to hundreds of children each year through our programs. We have a God-given responsibility to provide a safe, loving and protected environment for those children.”
For more information about local and online options for Stewards of Children training, visit http://www.darkness2light.org. Statistics were provided by Darkness to Light.
Further Learning
Learn more about: Family, Abuse, Child Abuse, Sexual Abuse, Children
1 comments (post your own) feed
1 On Oct 23rd, 2007, at 9:46pm, Leroy S. Anderson, Jr. wrote:
I am currently preparing a Literary Review of the book, “Protecting Your Church Against Sexual Predators: Legal FAQs for Church Leaders” by Voyle Glover, Esq.
Thank you for such an insightful, plain English and easily adaptable approach to addressing a sinful dilemma in the church today.
I will certainly share this website with my professor at Shaw University Divinity School, Raleigh, NC.