Healing Spiritual Wounds

Are you feeling angry at the church?

There are many ways that we are wounded by abuse we receive as children or later in life. Though some abuses cause deeper wounds than others, they are all damaging. There is physical abuse and sexual abuse. There is emotional abuse where nothing is done physically, but the words and actions make a person feel unworthy, ashamed, worthless, no good, stupid, and undeserving of good treatment. There is also abandonment and rejection. There is the crazy-making behavior where the words are loving and the actions hurtful. This isn’t everything, but it gives us a good idea about what abuse is like.

Religious or spiritual abuse can involve any of these with the added hurt of this being done by someone who is seen as representing the church or religion. This can alienate a person from church or religion and deprive them of the value that church and religion had been or could be for them. This leaves a great emptiness that holds anger, confusion, cynicism, and despair.

Something that goes still deeper sometimes occurs. Since church and religion are associated with God, a person can feel alienated from and abandoned by God. Sometimes it will feel like God is hating them or punishing them. Such an image of God is worse than no God at all. For a person’s faith and trust in God to be destroyed is the ultimate wound. The ultimate Love is seen as the Ultimate Hate.

The process here at St. Stans starts Monday, September 19th from 7:00-9:00 p.m. It is an opportunity to begin or continue the healing process. Come if you feel that this could be helpful to you. Come with a friend if you choose. If you want to tell your story or a part of your story, you will be listened to with understanding and without judgment. If you just want to listen to other’s stories, that is okay too. You will not be asked to do anything. This is for healing. No other agenda.

If you do not want to wait you may call me, Fr. Clay at (651) 292-0303