She sits and ponders. Sometimes she is in pain. She rarely speaks. Her voice has been silenced. Her back is bruised, but her outfit and a few pain pills cover the hurt. Last night she was treated for another session of hubby’s anger explosion. In the outside world he is kind and gracious. He is even in leadership position in the church. He is treated like a model to the community. Inside the house children and wife are aware of how easily dad can lose his cool. His vocal chords reach record volume. His mistreatment and verbal slaps are constant, or can be triggered easily. They all walk quietly so as not awake the sleeping giant.
This description is the description of domestic abuse.
I write this because pastors sometimes treat these silenced victims as the guilty party. They blame them while overlooking the abuser.
For more information on this topic, purchase Jeff Crippen’s informative book A Cry for Justice: How the Evil of Domestic Abuse Hides in your Church.
Also, if you have the time his lengthy audio series is quite helpful.
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