Child Abuse Training

Thank you!

Children are a blessing from God, endowed with dignity by virtue of being created in the image of God. Furthermore, these children are particularly vulnerable, needing protection, care, and godly instruction from parents, guardians, family, and the local church. In this way, God has entrusted the children of our congregation to our care. This is a task that carries tremendous reward, but one that also carries tremendous weight and responsibility.

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Why do Abusers Target Churches?

Some sexual offenders deliberately target churches because they want to take advantage of naive Christians. We try to think the best of everyone, and they know this.
The purpose of the following presentation is to educate us on the realities of child abuse and to help us understand the purpose of the Child Protection Policy and Procedures.

Thank you for reading, and please take a moment to pray for Cornerstone. Thank you!

By the numbers

There are approximately 747,000 registered sex offenders in the U.S.
There are more than 100,000 sexual offenders who fail to report every year.
As many as 1 in 3 girls and 1 in 4 boys will be sexually abused at some point in their childhood.
Approximately 30 percent of all cases are reported to authorities - 70 percent never get proper attention or prosecution
Over 63,000 cases of child sexual abuse were reported in 2010.
Offenders typically prey on children that they know.
Almost half of the offenders who sexually assaulted victims under age six were family members.
The Department of Justice reports that children under age twelve make up half of all victims of sexual abuse of some sort.
Sexual predators often have dozens of victims.
Only three percent of sexual offenders have a chance of getting caught.

*If you are interested in reading a very good book about preventing and responding to child abuse at church, I highly recommend On Guard by Deepak Reju. The information in this presentation comes from his research.*

How does this happen?

There are two types of predators:

Persuasion predators (AKA wolves in sheep's clothing)
Power Predators

We will focus on persuasion predators in this presentation. They are the most common in churches, and wolrd-wide.

Persuasion Predators

What is a persuasion predator?

They are very likeable people, who are trusted by adults and children.
They take their time to gain people’s trust, so that if a charge is brought against them, no one would believe it.
They see what we value (love for others, a trusting disposition) as weaknesses on which they can prey.

Where do churches let their guard down?

We love and trust and feel like we know everyone, so why go through the whole background check process?

Everyone has come through with a clean record so far, so why bother?

How do Persuasion Predators Act?

You will think that they are the best person in the world - well-dressed, well-off, well-liked, and volunteers to work with children!
Most children know how to respond to an unwelcomed stranger (stranger danger) but they’re uncertain what to do when a “safe” adult makes them uncomfortable.
Sexual offenders work very hard to be likable and respectable members of a church. Once they are trusted, they gain access to children. This process is called “grooming”.
The ability to charm, to be likeable, to radiate sincerity and truthfulness is crucial to gaining access to children.
The persuasion predator will give gifts, words of praise, an extraordinary amount of attention, and show affection to the unsuspecting child (and gain the trust and admiration of the parents in the process)
Physical contact starts with more innocent behaviors and the persuasion predator pushes the boundaries a little at a time, in order to blur the lines between appropriate and inappropriate behavior

Why do Sexual Predators go after Churches?

Christians are naive and trusting
Christians, on the whole, are ignorant of the problem, and therefore, don’t guard against it
Abuse of authority (think of pastors and priests who abuse)
Manipulation of religious roles and/or language (children are taught to respect trust, and obey adults) “God told me to do this” or “this is not sin, but love”

Many parents never talk about sex at home, so children don’t have proper categories for what is happening to them when they are abused and they are likely to just go along with it.
Accessibility of children
Cheap grace (Pastors and churches are very forgiving, at very little cost to the offender. They are quick to apply the gospel and very slow to apply the consequences that come from the law.)

Why aren’t Persuasion Predators Reported Right Away?

There are many reasons why.

One is that they have developed a relationship of trust with the church family

Because the predator is so admired and trusted, children aren’t believed when they find the courage to speak up

The predator has also gained the child’s trust over time, so the truth of what is appropriate and what is inappropriate is confused.

Predators tend to spiritually manipulate the child

Sexual predators are evil. They deceive and manipulate in order to gain access to children.

Are we Defenseless?

We know that the Bible tells us there is evil in this world, and so we should be “wise as serpents and innocent as doves” (Mt. 10:16)

We can’t deal with this problem on our own. As Christians we have God on our side. He will help us to be wise.

Cornerstone’s Child Protection Policy and Procedures has been written and updated to help us to be wise.

Please help us to follow it to the best of our ability. And please pray for Cornerstone.
Thank you!

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