Either Julia Baird is on a crusade against churches or she has no clue about how to interpret statistics. Judging by her previous articles it is both.

Having said that, the substance of the survey is disturbing.

The authors of the report admit that the respondents were self-selecting. Something along the lines of “Call us if you want to take part in research into domestic violence in churches.” Obviously those who have some experience of the issue are more likely to reply to that invitation.

So we don’t know from this that the figure is one in four of all churchgoers. It could be one in ten or one in twenty.

Having said that, any domestic violence (perpetrated by men or women) within a church is unacceptable. What is scary is their statement that independent or newly established evangelical and charismatic churches are more likely to have DV happening in their midst. This would be especially true in the rapidly growing churches and those with superficial relationships.

Anyway, it looks like I might need to do some research and preventative work at the very least.

From the ABC

One in four churchgoers in abusive relationships, UK study finds

Updated 58 minutes ago

 

One in four churchgoers has experienced domestic abuse in their current relationship, according to a new study in Britain.

The research, conducted in Cumbria by academics at Coventry University and the University of Leicester in conjunction with Christian charity Restored, has led to urgent calls for churches in Britain and Australia to expose and counter abuse in their midst, with the authors finding more priests need to publicly condemn abuse “from the pulpit”.

Almost half of those who sought help from their church (47.2 per cent) said they were unlikely to do so again, if they experienced abuse in the future.

Only two in seven thought their church was adequately equipped to deal with a disclosure of abuse.

Mandy Marshall, a co-founder of Restored, a global Christian alliance that aims to end violence against women, said: “One of the biggest barriers we have faced is Christians not believing that domestic abuse could happen in their church.”

She added: “My hope is that this research is a wake-up call to all churches to recognise that domestic abuse happens in churches, too, and that we need to respond appropriately and effectively when domestic abuse is disclosed.”

The study comes after an ABC News investigation found women in Australian Christian communities — a number of them clergy wives — were being told to endure or forgive domestic violence and stay in abusive relationships, and that churches of all denominations had too often ignored their reports, failed to recognise the different forms abuse took and did not ensure safety or provide adequate care.and humiliation.

Dr Kristin Aune, of Coventry University, the study’s lead author, said: “A quarter of the people we heard from told us they had been physically hurt by their partners, sexually assaulted, emotionally manipulated, or had money withheld from them.”

The most commonly experienced form of abuse was emotional.

Barbara Roberts, the leader of A Cry For Justice, a website for Christian survivors of domestic violence, said the new research gives Australian church leaders a strong mandate to address domestic abuse more forcefully.

“We need clergy to speak up about domestic abuse,” Ms Roberts told ABC News. “But when they speak without much knowledge, they can do more harm than good.”

Read the full article here