Abuse is serious; we need facts not polemic to fight it

The news from Australia made it all the way to the Church Times in the UK. And the headline was stark and clear – ‘Australia: Anglican women more likely to suffer domestic violence.’ (Church Times 18 June 2021).

Given that many people only read the headline, given that the report on which it was based was commissioned by the Anglican Church in Australia and given the ‘facts’ produced in the article – the implication was clear: those who are taught Biblical values are more likely to abuse and be abused.

When I first read of this in The Sydney Morning Herald (which ended up doing three articles showing why Biblical Christianity leads to abuse!) my first reaction was, ‘Oh that’s horrible’. My second was to ask if it was true – and so I went and read the original report and found that the Church Times article is, to be kind, somewhat economical with the truth.

The Church Times article on the Australian Anglican abuse report gives us some selected ‘facts’. Fifteen per cent of Australians surveyed for the report had experienced domestic violence – 22% of Anglicans. Forty-four per cent of Anglicans said they had suffered domestic violence, compared with 38% of the general population. There you have it. We have the data. It’s an ‘open and shut case’. The facts ‘prove’ it. But do they?

Deeply flawed

Firstly, the methodology, message and presentation of the report are deeply flawed. The definition of abuse which the report uses includes any of 15 behaviours. These are never really defined in sufficient detail, and so could encompass both deeply damaging behaviour which needs to be taken seriously, but also the sort of row that almost most couples have from time to time. It also included spiritual abuse. This also is a real thing (as we know from recent high-profile cases); but here it lacks definition. For example, the report states that 10% of the public report that they have been spiritually abused. It is far from clear what that means.

Limited sample

Secondly, the statistics were also based on a very limited sample – around only 200 ‘church-going’ Anglicans (‘church-going’ means several times per year) from the whole of Australia – a mere 20 of whom were interviewed. The compilers admitted that this was ‘non-probability samples from online panels so representativeness to the wider population cannot be claimed’; something the Church Times forgot to mention! They also forgot to mention that one third of Anglican men claim to have been abused.

Fuzzy scope

Thirdly, even taking the 22%, the question was not whether they had experienced abuse within, or even while they were part of, the Anglican church. It was whether they had ever in their lifetime experienced abuse. So, if a person had been abused as a child, then been converted in an Anglican church as an adult, they would find themselves being used as a statistic which proves you are more likely to be abused as an Anglican…

We do have a problem

Intimate partner abuse is a problem in our churches. Abuse of power is a problem in our churches. The failure to understand and respond appropriately to those who have experienced trauma is a problem in our churches. We need to face up to these problems and address them directly, decisively and Biblically. This will require clear and careful sanctified thought, spiritual insight and discernment, and humility. It requires the kind of laser-sharp insight and deep conviction that can only come from the Spirit of God Himself. Truth needs to be seen, understood and spoken. But the truth needs to be evidenced.

Lazy journalism

The report in the Church Times is typical of the kind of lazy journalism from people who seize upon sensationalist headlines because they want it to be true. It confirms their bias that Biblical Christianity is fundamentally misogynistic and abusive. This is not truth-telling and ultimately, such an approach, based on falsehood, cannot diagnose and treat the problems.

I wrote a response for the Australian Presbyterian magazine (google ‘Are you more likely to be abused as an Anglican?’) which examined the abuse report in some detail -https://ap.org.au/2021/06/17/are-you-more-likely-to-be-abused-as-an-anglican/

In our culture, if you dare to point out difficulties with surveys such as this, it can lead to accusations of ‘enabling perpetrators’ or ‘excusing abuse’. But the truth is that those who weaponise the issue of abuse in order to make theological points are themselves enablers. Truly Biblical teaching liberates women, prevents abuse, and enables a more just and less violent society for all. It is those who move away from the teaching of Christ who are regressing us to the Greco/Roman/ Pagan abusive view of women and children.

Oppose and expose this evil

This is not to deny – for a moment – that there are those who misuse the teaching of the Bible to justify their own violence and lust; they deserve the condemnation that should be theirs. Nor is it to say that churches should ignore the scourge of horrific domestic violence that increasingly plagues our culture. Precisely the opposite. We should do all that we can to oppose and expose this evil. Ironically Sydney Anglicans (who most of the attacks are aimed at) have a robust system for dealing with domestic violence – which many other churches could learn from.

Sadly, however, here the lies went all the way round the world before the truth had got its boots on!

David Robertson and en acknowledge with thanks the advice and input of those with professional safeguarding expertise in writing about this sensitive and complex issue.