Breaking the Silence of Violence
post #3
Manifesto
Quietness is the antonym of agitation
it’s the space to unravel, unwind, decipher
knots, joints, twists
the contortion of life
things which grow entangled
are truly exposed to the breeze
what’s my part to be done?
how much oddity is accepted
is there any restriction for the thoughts to be exposed?
or there is a limit for peculiarity:
like a metaphysical bed of Procrustes ?
hmm …
I guess you need to use meat processors
for brains
so the people wearing the weird ones
will have it mélange
and processed
by the clean people
wearing sterilized instruments
in a very uncontaminated society
As we end our journey together, we still find ourselves in different places along the grief spectrum of delving into the pervasiveness and depth of violence against women. The poem above represents one member’s expression of anger and lament. As our group steps out of the font immersed in the waters of violence, we are left cold, angry and carrying the compass of directional placement needed to be heard from the church. The acknowledgement of most needed holding from our church community is steadfast in our hearts. Although we read different sources, we march forward in loud, unified voices proclaiming, “Authentic church, authentic voice, a sin of violence against women is a sin against God. A sin against her is a sin against all.”
Through our group study much light was shed on how the church can either heal or harm, often through silence, complicity or the misuse of power. What became evident is that the core issues of silence within the church are not rooted in theology itself, or even in the ways violence is woven throughout the scriptures, but more accurately, it seems to be the incorrect conclusions that some practitioners of the discipline draw from their studies This has been prevalent since Christ walked the earth, and impacts how the gospel is presented. That significantly shapes the way the church engages or turns away from harm and trauma. Too often the focus is on the push toward forgiveness, rather than justice.
We must allow anger and lament. So often in our society, anger is shut down, suppressed using different “anesthetics”. Therefore, in reading about expressive arts therapy, we learned that in using art as a therapeutic tool, creative spaces are conceived, to unravel, unwind, and decipher the knots, joints, twists and contortions of life. Without restrictions, thoughts are exposed, and things that are entangled are brought to the light, giving a voice to suffering and hurt.
It is now time to rise up and call out the leaders who speak to the church community. “Gendercide is a confessional issue”, as Gerhardt states in The Cross and Gendercide. Is the humility at the cross a place for silent omission of violence? No, we proclaim, this must be a time of action for the church to recognize the sin violence has done and continues to do to women and girls. We face a defining moment as a Church. Will we shrink in fear and despair or will we join the cry of the vulnerable, echoing their voice and defending their courage?
Even though we are still at different points of this journey, we continued to look for ways our common goal of wanting to shed light on harm and give those harmed a voice intersected. We learned that there are organizations specifically addressing these same concerns, so one concrete thing we did was to sign petitions at the following websites. We encourage the readers of this blog to go to these websites and read the statements and consider signing them as well. Individually and collectively we will strive to bring light into darkness and bring voice and healing to those who have been harmed. Here is a portion of one of the statements:
We proclaim with one voice
that violence against women exists in all communities, including our own, and is morally, spiritually and universally intolerable.We acknowledge that our sacred texts, traditions and values have too often been misused to perpetuate and condone abuse.
We draw upon our healing texts and practices to help
make our families and societies whole.Our religious and spiritual traditions compel us to work for justice and the eradication of violence against women.
We call upon people of all religious and spiritual traditions to join us
Faithtrustinstitute.org & Silenceisnotspiritual.org
…
Bibliography:
Cooper-White, Pamela. The Cry of Tamar: Violence against women and the church’s response. Philadelphia, PA: Fortress Press, 2012.
Gerhardt, Elizabeth L. The Cross and Gendercide: A Theological Response to Global Violence Against Women and Girls. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2014.
Grenz, Stanley J. Created for Community: Connecting Christian Belief with Christian Living. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 1998.
