wfn.org | Canadian diocese tackles family violence

[Worldwide Faith News <wfn@wfn.org>]

Diocese tackles family violence

Leanne Larmondin
Website Manager

Fredericton, N.B.

There was a time, not so long ago, when the church was the last place
victims of family violence would go for help. The impression was that
churches either would not understand the problem or, worse, would counsel
victims to continue a commitment to marriage, even a dysfunctional one.

The Diocese of Fredericton's newly formed Family Abuse Issues Ministry
(FAIM) is working at changing that.

Denial of the problem of family abuse was common in churches years ago,
said Rev. Eileen Irish, a member of the ministry team.

"There were clergy who said 'I don't have any of that in my parish,'" said
Ms. Irish, rector of the Parish of Greenwich.

"To me, there was a lot of putting the head in the sand. Now, we've gone
beyond that and people are saying there is a need."

There is still some reluctance by parishioners to seek help from a priest
for violence at home, said Ms. Irish.

"In my experience, most people in abusive situations believe they've made
that commitment," she said, adding that people with a church background can
find it even more difficult to leave. "But we have to understand that we
are all God's children and to be a whole person, you have to be free and
not abused in any way: mentally, physically, spiritually."

The ministry, an outgrowth of a diocesan task force created for the
Ecumenical Decade of Churches in Solidarity with Women (1988-1998), was
launched recently to deal with abuse, which the task force felt it had to
continue to address.

"We're responding to a need we feel is out there," said Ms. Irish.

Members of the ministry team include Ms. Irish, fellow priests Rev. Brenda
McKnight and Rev. Barry Craig and lay people Margaret Petrie, Mary
Richardson and Joan Teed, a social worker. All have either counselled
victims of abuse or been victims themselves.

The ministry is working with a University of New Brunswick sociologist,
Nancy Nason-Clark, to put together a training program for the diocese's
clergy, which it will test in a pilot project in one of the diocese's
deaneries. It also hopes to declare a Family Violence Awareness Sunday
which would serve as an education day for parishes.

The group is convinced that the solution to the problem of family violence
is to offer support to both victims and abusers.

"We're looking at abuse holistically rather than simply the abuse of
women," said Margaret Petrie. She explains that the cycle of abuse often
starts when the abuser is a child, "so, you're not going to get far by
working with just one individual (the victim)."

While the ministry does not expect to eradicate family violence in the
diocese, "our objective is to make a dint in it," said Ms. Petrie. Its
primary focus will be to increase awareness about domestic violence and to
educate clergy and the public.

Ms. Petrie admits that in the past, some women particularly did not
approach their clergy for help in dealing with violence at home, partly in
fear that their church would tell them that marriage is permanent, violence
notwithstanding.

"Unfortunately we have had to deal with that here," said Ms. Petrie. "A lot
of women are not comfortable going to their priests. Now, at least, priests
are saying they have no training but they are realizing that this is a
reality."

The group has established a website which it hopes will serve as a
clearinghouse for resources on abuse.

LINK:

Family Abuse Issues Ministry -- Diocese of Fredericton
http://personal.nbnet.nb.ca/alpetrie/

For more information, contact Margaret Petrie (506) 832-2276 or Rev. Eileen
Irish (506) 468-2458.

»ïÏï«,¸¸,»ïÏï«,¸¸,»ïÏï«,¸¸,»ïÏï«,¸¸,»ïÏï«,¸¸,»ïÏï«,¸¸,»ïÏï«
Leanne Larmondin * Website Manager
*Anglican Church of Canada*
600 Jarvis St., Toronto ON  M4Y 2J6
416 924 9199 ext. 307 * ll@anglican.ca

http://www.anglican.ca
»ïÏï«,¸¸,»ïÏï«,¸¸,»ïÏï«,¸¸,»ïÏï«,¸¸,»ïÏï«,¸¸,»ïÏï«,¸¸,»ïÏï«