Day 7: When Speaking on Behalf of God is Risky
Josh Dowton, Executive Pastor at Northside Baptist Church, shares how being in church leadership is risky if it becomes a form of control and coercion.
Common Grace longs for all households to be places of nurture, safety and support, where violence against women is eliminated.
To mark 16 Days of Activism this year, Common Grace is inviting followers of Jesus to deepen their understanding of coercive control, and how it plays out in people’s personal lives, in our church communities, and in our legal systems, and how it violates God’s design for loving relationships. As 1 Corinthians 13:5-7 says, “[love] does not dishonour others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.”
This series invites people to reflect on the nature of coercive control and seeks to encourage each of us to pursue the dignity, respect, freedom and safety of women and children in our lives and communities. As we reflect, meditate, pray and take action for justice for women experiencing gender-based violence we will remind ourselves of what true love is.
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This series features 16 daily written reflections from domestic and family violence, experts, practitioners and from people who have experienced domestic violence. Reflections on coercive control will include a range of perspectives, including: legal; community and pastoral care; intersections with spiritual abuse; how to recognise signs of coercive control, prevention of DFV; and healing and recovery for women experiencing domestic abuse.
Through this lens of understanding coercive control as a common factor in domestic and family violence we seek to equip people to be better informed in how to respond to and prevent gender-based violence. When we are able to respond compassionately to women experiencing violence, walk alongside them in their journey of healing and recovering, and take steps to prevent violence from occurring we can begin to transform our communities - communities that better reflect the kingdom of God.
And as we come together as the body of Christ, we can use our gracious voice to call for changes, not only in our churches and local communities, but in our national laws and policies and culture that deeply impacts gender-based violence in this country.
Our incredible contributors to this series includes Erica Mandi Manga, Gershon Nimbalker, Scott Holme, Josh Dowton, Rev Tracy Lauersen, Steve Frost and more.
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To read more about Common Grace’s initial response to the new NSW Coercive Control Laws please visit here: https://www.commongrace.org.au/nsw_coercive_control_laws
