I was inspired by Andrea De Avila’s excellent post last week, entitled Five things Friday roundup: The Mennonite list. Her list related to supporting survivors of sexual assault and abuse is timely and important. In my other job, I serve as the library director of the Western District Conference Resource Library, and while I don’t have a way to facilitate the kind of list Andrea was suggesting, I did immediately think of resources to help support those who want to follow Andrea’s suggestions. So here are a few resources to help you learn to move toward safer spaces for children, vulnerable adults and survivors of all ages.
1. Circle of Grace
Circle of Grace is a Christian safe environment curriculum that helps to form and educate children and youth about the value of positive relationships with God and others. This curriculum has one to four lessons for each age group, integrating important lessons about boundaries and consent with the faith-driven realities of our bodies, minds and souls as beautiful, good creations of God. At this link, you can also see other aspects related to Mennonite Church USA’s Safe Church initiatives (excellent resources to those within and outside the denomination).
2. Safe Sanctuaries
Safer Sanctuaries: Nurturing Trust within Faith Communities from Upper Room Books is the updated version of Safe Sanctuaries — an excellent resource to help reduce the risk of abuse in faith communities through proven policies and practice. The website states, “The seven sections of this resource walk through the theological grounding of this work, the psychology of abuse prevention, the basic guidelines for risk reduction, age-level specific guidance, step-by-step instructions on designing and implementing a church-wide policy, how to respond to abuse, and an affirmation and encouragement for the work ahead.”
3. Teach healthy relationships to sexuality
Many parents of young children in our congregations were raised in the midst of purity culture and its related harms. Support parents who are trying to navigate issues of healthy relationships to sexuality and to teach faith values surrounding sexuality, consent and more, through a faithful framework. One way to help is to read and share books like She Deserves Better: Raising Girls to Resist Toxic Teachings on Sex, Self, and Speaking Up by Sheila Wray Gregoire, Rebecca Gregoire Lindenbach and Joanna Sawatsky.
4. Keep learning
On my reading list is Healing Together: A Guide to Supporting Sexual Abuse Survivors by Anne Miller. The book addresses many questions, including: What is sexual abuse? How can I help survivors? When and how should authorities be contacted?
5. Share with kids
There are lots of good books out there to read with kids about how good their bodies were created and how to protect them, how to respond to harmful or confusing touch, and to know they are not to blame if abuse or assault ever happens to them. One of my favorites is God Made All of Me: A Book to Help Children Protect Their Bodies by Justin Holcomb. (You can even see a sample of the book in the link.) Books can be such a great conversation starter for some of these tough conversations with kids. It can be easier to talk about kids in the story and what they’re learning than to talk personally with the child hearing the story. Also, books like this read often help normalize the conversation!
Have a comment on this story? Write to the editors. Include your full name, city and state. Selected comments will be edited for publication in print or online.