This is part three in a series of posts by Kathy Wiens, a sexual violence survivor, and her husband, Tim, who has been her strong ally. The series focuses on her experience of advocating for people vulnerable to abuse in her Mennonite church home where she struggled to resist retraumatization as the community of faith she trusted prioritized the needs of a perpetrator and his family over the wellbeing of survivors and those vulnerable to abuse in the congregation. Kathy speaks with truth, pain, and wisdom that many survivors know. Her courage to speak, even as there is mounting pressure to stay quiet and a steep emotional toll exacted for not doing so, is, as I have said previously, an inspiration. We have something to learn from Kathy’s experience, from her determination to protect the vulnerable, and from her knowledge about what it takes for a community of faith to understand sexualized violence, respect survivors, and become a space committed to resisting abuse and holding perpetrators accountable. If you missed them, you can find part one here and part two here. Thank you, Kathy. Again today, we are all indebted to you. Kathy requests that anyone wanting to reach out to her do so through her […]
The post When the Church Walks Away: Part Three appeared first on Our Stories Untold.
