Get your church involved

Learn together

We long for all households and churches to be places of nurture, safety and healing, where violence against women and children is eliminated. 

For this vision to be a reality, we want to see the four key drivers of gender-based violence addressed: 

• Where violence against women is no longer condoned. 
• Where women’s independence in private and public life is not limited because of men’s control of decision-making. 
• Where gender stereotypes are no longer rigid, and 
• Where male peers and cultures of masculinity stop emphasising aggression, dominance and control. 

We know that rates of domestic and family violence are just as high in our churches as they are in our wider society. That is why we need all churches to help prevent violence against women. 

There is so much more work to be done, not just by the government, the family violence sector, church denominations, or local churches, but by everyone. The cost and ramifications of a country battling with a DFV epidemic calls for everyone to be involved in changing, not only policies and funding, but culture. With your church taking seriously the call to pursue justice for women and children, we can help shape our culture and society to be safe, where all people are treated with love, respect and dignity. 

To learn more about Domestic and Family Violence visit 'Learn about the issue'. 

SAFER Resource

SAFER is Common Grace's free online resource intended to help Christian leaders and congregations:

• understand how domestic and family violence starts
• recognise different kinds of abuse
• find the right help for victims
• appropriately support people affected by abuse
• encourage perpetrators to change their behaviour.

Another great place to find resources for churches is Restored Relationships, an international Christian alliance working to transform relationships and end violence against women. They have 63 Resources for churches to learn together, such as bible studies, prayers, church packs, self-assessment tools, etc.

Pray together

We'd also encourage you to include domestic & family violence issues within your prayer times as a community. We've put some guiding prayers together to help you in your services. Click here to go to prayer resources page. 

16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence

The 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence is an annual international campaign that kicks off on 25 November, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, and runs until 10 December, Human Rights Day. It is used as an organising strategy by individuals and organisations around the world to call for the prevention and elimination of violence against women and girls.

We've developed a number of daily blog and prayer series that help you understand the foundations of domestic and family violence, pray for justice for people experiencing violence, and this year we will be looking at understanding and confronting coercive control.

• 2024 - Challenging Coercive Control

• 2019 - Foundations for Christian Action

• 2016 - 16 Days of Prayer

• 2015 - 16 Days of Prayer