Be the change you want to see in the church.
It’s been a rough year and a half for the church in America. Over the past months #metoo and #churchtoo has entered our common vernacular as we watch one leader after another fall. For many, this has come as a shock. But if we look at research, what is occurring shouldn’t surprise us. Research has shown that most pastors have struggled with porn, one way sexual immorality manifests itself. It’s not necessarily that more sin is occurring, but rather that sin is being exposed.
As managing editor of The Exchange, when Ed shared with me the latest article on Paige Patterson, my reaction was pretty simple: “This is getting really old.” Two weeks prior, when Ed wanted to post on moral failure among Christian leaders, he texted me as I was leaving from dropping off lunch to a woman who has been the victim of trafficking and her life nearly destroyed. My reaction then was also pretty simple, “I’m really angry. So many lives are being destroyed.”
My reaction within a two-week timeframe had swung from rage to apathy. This, I think, is how many women, and many victims of sexual assault and abuse, feel inside the church today.
The need for change
So if we were to say that being a woman in the church today isn’t easy, too many women would unfortunately resonate with that statement. But this kind of sin inside the church is likely not new. What we are witnessing is simply what has already been happening coming into the light. John Richards, my direct boss, recently wrote an article on Being Black and Tired—Yet Hopeful. In it, he both challenged his fellow black Christians to keep up the good fight and he gave an insider perspective that is helpful to those of us who are not black. ...
from
http://www.christianitytoday.com/edstetzer/2018/may/moral-failings-in-church-how-can-women-and-victims-respond.html
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