Nathan Eshelman recently penned this very helpful review article of a newly published book on spiritual abuse in the church. This is a must read. While there are certainly autocratic bullies in the Church, there are also dangerous, manipulative abusers in the pew who–if not held to simple, biblical and presbyterian standards for conflict resolution–can create tremendous harm.
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If you stumbled into a rabbit hole you may find several things that intrigue you. There may be keys and playing cards or caterpillars—and maybe even a rabbit. But just because you find keys, playing cards, and caterpillars does not mean that you’ve entered the world of the Red Queen and the hookah-smoking caterpillar. Sometimes it takes more. Jefferson Airplane said it like this:
“One pill makes you larger And one pill makes you small And the ones that mother gives you Don’t do anything at all Go ask Alice When she’s ten feet tall…”
I am working on a writing project that has taken me into various books on church relationships and communication. In the midst of that project, a beloved former professor of mine and churchmen has resigned from the ministry, in part, because of what is currently being called “spiritual abuse.” The idea of spiritual abuse is everywhere right now.
Note: this is a distinct, public event after the earlier PRTS Student Society lecture below. Both, however, are livestreamed (yet not including the short RPM slideshow as these include unedited photos of personal mission contacts).
James Durham’s On Scandal is an enduring tribute of the Scottish Second Reformation to that ancient confession, “I believe an holy catholic Church.” There is nothing quite like it, in its thorough, thoughtful, pastoral handling of how to prevent and remedy divisions within the Church, both at the personal and congregational level, as well as organizationally in the broader Visible Church. The following chapter (4.7), “General Grounds leading to Unity,” lays out the path for visible, organizational unity. And it breathes of that simple, Christian yearning for the full answer to our Lord’s prayer, “That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me” (John 17:21).
Whole doctrine catholicity | “Who is she that looketh forth as the morning, fair as the moon, clear as the sun, and terrible as an army with banners” (Song 6:10)?
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But now, it may be of more difficulty to speak particularly to what indeed is duty at such a time when a Church lies under rents and divisions. For, though the general be granted, yet often it is difficult to take up the particular cure, and yet more difficult singly to follow the same. It is still more easy to prescribe rules to others than to follow them ourselves, especially in such a case when spirits are in the heat and fervour of contention, whereby they are somewhat drunken with affection to their own side and prejudice at the others, and distracted as it were with a sort of madness in pursuing their adversaries, as that great and meek Divine Melancthon did express it, so that it is hard to get affections that are in such a temper captivated to the obedience of light.
And though we will not take upon us to be particular and satisfying in this, wishing and hoping that it may be more effectually done by some other, yet, having come this length, we shall, in an abstracted manner, consider some things in reference thereunto and endeavour to hold forth what we conceive to be duty, especially to the Ministers of the Gospel who have interest in such a Church; as also what may be required of others who may possibly think themselves less concerned therein. We shall keep this order: we shall lay down some general grounds, which we suppose as granted; we shall premit some preparatory endeavours agreeable to the same; we shall speak negatively to what ought not to be done, or ought to be forborn; positively to the healing means called-for in reference to several sorts of division, with some questions incident thereupon; and lastly, we shall consider the grounds that press the serious and condescending application of these or other healing means in such a case.
West Port Experiment 