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    On This Rock: A Call to Center the Christian Response to Child Abuse on the Life and Words of Jesus
    On This Rock: A Call to Center the Christian Response to Child Abuse on the Life and Words of Jesus
    On This Rock: A Call to Center the Christian Response to Child Abuse on the Life and Words of Jesus
    Ebook119 pages1 hour

    On This Rock: A Call to Center the Christian Response to Child Abuse on the Life and Words of Jesus

    By Victor I. Vieth, Winston D. Persaud and Boz Tchividjian

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    Jesus was the descendant of sexually exploited women, narrowly survived a child homicide, and grew up to be the world's most prominent defender of children. Jesus reserved his harshest words for those who abused or neglected children and went so far as to say our treatment of children says everything about our view of God. Although the early church took this message to heart and distinguished itself by its treatment of children, this message has been distorted or ignored by many modern Christian leaders. As a result, the church has often failed to protect children from abuse and, in many instances, has contributed to their maltreatment.

    In this insightful book, Christian theologian and internationally recognized child abuse expert Victor Vieth examines the role of Jesus' life and teachings in reducing child abuse in the New Testament world. Vieth urges Christians to once again take seriously everything Jesus had to say about children. Using the teachings of Jesus as a blueprint, Vieth sets forth a proposal for church reform to prevent many cases of abuse, improve the pastoral care of survivors of abuse, and witness to the world that Christian faith shows itself in service to children.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherWipf and Stock
    Release dateJul 19, 2018
    ISBN9781532650017
    On This Rock: A Call to Center the Christian Response to Child Abuse on the Life and Words of Jesus
    Author

    Victor I. Vieth

    Victor I. Vieth is a former prosecutor who went on to direct the National Center for the Prosecution of Child Abuse. He is also the founder of the National Child Protection Training Center, the president of the Academy on Violence and Abuse, and serves on the board of directors of GRACE. His honors include the Pro Humanitate Award from the North American Resource Center for Child Welfare. His degrees include an MA from Wartburg Theological Seminary.

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      Book preview

      On This Rock - Victor I. Vieth

      9781532649998.kindle.jpg

      On this Rock

      A Call to Center the Christian Response to Child Abuse on the Life and Words of Jesus

      Victor I. Vieth

      Foreword by Boz Tchividjian

      Introduction by Winston D. Persaud

      9903.png

      On this Rock

      A Call to Center the Christian Response to Child Abuse on the Life and Words of Jesus

      Copyright © 2018 Victor I. Vieth. All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in critical publications or reviews, no part of this book may be reproduced in any manner without prior written permission from the publisher. Write: Permissions, Wipf and Stock Publishers, 199 W. 8th Ave., Suite 3, Eugene, OR 97401.

      Wipf & Stock

      An Imprint of Wipf and Stock Publishers

      199 W. 8th Ave., Suite 3

      Eugene, OR 97401

      www.wipfandstock.com

      paperback isbn: 978-1-5326-4999-8

      hardcover isbn: 978-1-5326-5000-0

      ebook isbn: 978-1-5326-5000-0

      Manufactured in the U.S.A. 09/18/18

      Table of Contents

      Title Page

      Foreword

      Acknowledgments

      Introduction

      Chapter 1: Welcoming Children as Christ’s Messengers

      Chapter 2: Like a Footprint in Wet Cement

      Chapter 3: Attitudes toward Children in the New Testament Era

      Chapter 4: Child Abuse at the Time of Christ

      Chapter 5: Jesus as a Child

      Chapter 6: Jesus and the Children

      Chapter 7: Child Abuse and Christ

      Chapter 8: Early Christian Responses to Child Abuse

      Chapter 9: Modern Christian Responses to Child Abuse

      Chapter 10: Centering Christian Responses to Child Abuse on the Words of Christ

      Chapter 11: Conclusion

      Bibliography

      In memory of the children who have died from abuse, in prayer for the children living in abusive or neglectful environments, in honor of child and adult survivors everywhere, and in gratitude for the child protection professionals and other brave souls striving to care for the least of these.

      Foreword

      Boz Tchividjian¹

      Let the children come to me and do not stop them, because the Kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.

      —Matthew 19:14

      As a Christian, I celebrate the fact that Jesus was the greatest child advocate that ever walked on this earth. The God of the universe became one of us, walked among us, and lived life with us. His words matter. I can think of no one of whom Jesus spoke more highly of than children. Not only did he claim that the kingdom of heaven belongs to children, but he spoke about how children reflect God when he stated, Whoever welcomes in my name one such child as this, welcomes me. Jesus is telling a crowd of adults that their view and treatment of children demonstrates their view and treatment of God. Wow! These are profound words spoken at a time when children were valued just a little more than slaves. Jesus’s words and life tell about a God who loves, cherishes, and highly esteems little ones.

      One of the greatest tragedies of the church has been how we have gradually lost sight of those precious words spoken by God with us. Instead of welcoming children, we say that they are to be seen and not heard. Instead of celebrating the fact that children are a reflection of Jesus today, we talk about them as being the church of tomorrow. Instead of being their greatest advocates and protectors, scores of children throughout generations have been wounded by those who profess Jesus. Instead of comforting wounded little ones, we have all too often chosen to ignore their cries. Tragically, I think we have largely forgotten Jesus’s words and life when it comes to children. What does all this disheartening information have to do with Victor Vieth? I can’t wait to tell you . . .

      Years ago when I was a young prosecutor, God moved my heart to focus my efforts on prosecuting child sexual abuse offenses. I could not fathom a more heinous and destructive offense than the sexual abuse of a child. I have sat across from many children who have shared with me the horror and confusion of being victimized by those they loved and trusted who were supposed to protect them. This indescribable evil and devastating betrayal creates deep wounds and a lifetime of painful consequences on victims and their loved ones. One of the most troubling aspects of prosecuting these cases was that, time and time again, I witnessed churches fail to protect children and fail to advocate for those who had been abused. It seemed as though the only time church members came to court in these cases was to express support for the alleged offender. All too often, the child victim and their family were ignored, ostracized, or sometimes even vilified by the church community. This never made sense to me knowing what I know about Jesus and his high view of children and damning view of those who hurt them. Those who professed to follow Jesus displayed ugly, anti-Jesus responses and inflicted overwhelming emotional and spiritual damage upon so many abuse victims. As a Christian, I loved the church, but I became increasingly bothered and even despondent about this dark dynamic I was witnessing. Sadly, most of my fellow prosecutors did not seem to share my concerns since many had little to no faith in Jesus, let alone his church. Then I met Victor.

      I’ll never forget the day. I was attending a prosecutor’s training conference on child sexual offenses and saw a tall thin guy who looked like a lost high school student (and a bit like Doogie Howser, MD) standing in front of the room. To my amazement (and shock) this high school student was introduced as the featured speaker, Victor Vieth. For the next hour, he mesmerized me with unparalleled knowledge and passion for protecting children and prosecuting those who hurt them. I recall introducing myself to Victor afterward and walking away thinking there is something different about that guy. In the coming months, I learned that Victor’s love for Jesus fueled his passion and commitment to this difficult subject. Finally, I could recognize a follower of the One who loves, protects, and cherishes little ones. A few months later, I received

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