A few things Christian leaders can take away from the political/media discussions around sexual abuse in various social institutions:
- Assume your ministry’s default response to abuse allegations will likely be inadequate. Resolve to be careful and critical when you have to deal with them.
- Understand that different members of the church will see and understand different things. How are you going to open doors substantial input from those outside your leadership team?
- Realise how deceitful evil is: it can distort true things and find loopholes and excuses. Keep working on your teaching, sermon application, pastoral counsel and policy writing to not give the devil a foothold.
- Beware of how easy it is to fudge things to avoid blame, or say things on a way that implies a victim is somehow to blame.
- What biblical applications/warnings could be added to your preaching, youth group teaching, marriage prep, leadership training?
