Ministering to Victims of Incest: A Model for Church Response

This project confronts incest in the Church. It addresses the need for women to be spiritually empowered for transformational leadership in the marriage and family. Mostly women suffer incest and other forms of domestic violence perpetrated by men. While this project addresses impact of incest on the progressive sanctification of Christian women, it also calls for a balanced biblical approach to ministry interventions, informed by understanding of the unique needs of men who also experienced incest and other forms of childhood abuse.
Data was gathered using qualitative and quantitative approaches in a triangular method that included a case study, focus groups and surveys. Literature was another source.
The research data showed that while pastors care about understanding the needs of female congregants who suffer childhood incest, many do not feel competent to meet those needs. The main conclusion of the quantitative survey was that where women suffered childhood incest, male cousins were the perpetrators. One limitation is that underreporting may have affected female respondents’ surveys.
The research results informed the development of a curriculum entitled “The Family Needs Fruit” (John 15: 1-8, 16; Gal. 5:13-6:10), to facilitate character development, identity formation, and spiritual empowerment in women who suffered childhood incest. The curriculum, grounded in the practice of spiritual disciplines, might appear limited as a proposed intervention strategy, but who – other than the real counselor, the Holy Spirit, has the power to transform the lives of women who are made in the image of Almighty God and who suffered childhood incest?