We often get asked about the prevalence of domestic violence in the Christadelphian community. In the same way as the ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) has found in a series of articles on domestic violence in the church - that there are no statistics to really help answer this question..., there is really no way of knowing the real prevalence in the Christadelphian community. We can say clearly (anecdotally) that it does occur. It occurs in conservative families and

When weighing up a decision to leave an abuser, one balancing consideration (of many) is if and how the father is fulfilling his scriptural duties. An abuser’s bad example may be teaching his children to dishonour their mother and to despise or mistreat her. This creates a home environment of shame and fear where there is none of the love Christ has us. “There is no fear in love” (1 John 4:18 ESV). This affects the emotional well-being of children. The abuser is breaking his

​ ​Horrifying though it is to contemplate, family and domestic violence occurs within the household of faith. Once, we found it difficult to accept that child abuse has occurred in the ecclesia. Now we have the same challenge to accept the reality of family and domestic violence. Just as we are surprised when we find a person we have known for many years was sexually abused as a child or a person we have respected for decades has been a child abuser we face a similar situatio

Important distinctions must be made: separation does not mean divorce. Forgiveness need not mean a fully-restored trust. Departing does not mean no hope of future reconciliation. A victim may forgive and still love her abuser, but it does not follow that she trusts he has changed. She may never trust him again, or he may need to show he deserves her trust over a long period. A victim should do everything to protect her and her children’s well-being. The abuser must accept tha

This is a perversion of the truth. It was God’s will that Jesus suffered at the hands of wicked men. We are called upon to suffer “for Christ’s sake” but domestic abuse is not “for Christ’s sake”. Christ is not in an abuser’s thoughts. It is not God’s will that we endure abuse. Abuse is the opposite of what we can expect at the hands of our Loving Heavenly Father (Luke 11:9-13). It is the opposite of what those claiming to be like Him would do. Escaping an abusive husband o

​ ​The definitions of domestic violence in Australia’s laws include not only physical but sexual, psychological and economic abuse. The Law of Christ also makes no distinction between physical and other abuse. Victims live in a state of constant fear of the abusers’ next attack regardless of the type of abuse. This fear has no place in Christ-like relationships. For husbands and wives Christ requires the husband and the wife to walk in love and be imitators of God as dear