Intimate partner violence is a complex, ugly, fear-inducing reality for large numbers of women around the world. When violence exists in a relationship, safety is compromised, shame abounds, and peace evaporates. Violence is learned behavior and it flourishes most when it is ignored, minimized, or misunderstood. When it strikes the homes of deeply religious women, they are: more vulnerable; more likely to believe that their abusive partners can, and will, change; less likely to leave a violent home, temporarily or forever; often reluctant to seek outside sources of assistance; and frequently disappointed by the response of the religious leader to their call for help. These women often believe they are called by God to endure the suffering, to forgive (and to keep on forgiving) their abuser, and to fulfill their marital vows until death do us part. Concurrently, many batterers employ explicitly religious language to justify the violence towards their partners, and sometime they manipulate spiritual leaders who try to offer them help. Religion and Intimate Partner Violence seeks to navigate the relatively unchartered waters of intimate partner violence in families of deep faith. The program of research on which it is based spans over twenty-five years, and includes a wide variety of specific studies involving religious leaders, congregations, battered women, men in batterer intervention programs, and the army of workers who assist families impacted by abuse, including criminal justice workers, therapeutic staff, advocacy workers, and religious leaders. The authors provide a rich and colorful portrayal of the intersection of intimate partner violence and religious beliefs and practices that inform and interweave throughout daily life. Such a focus on lived religion enables readers to isolate, examine, and evaluate ways in which religion both augments and thwarts the journey towards justice, accountability, healing and wholeness for women and men caught in the web of intimate partner violence.

Religion and Intimate Partner Violence: Understanding the Challenges and Proposing Solutions (Interpersonal Violence)

Politics & Social Sciences

Nason-Clark, Nancy

Fisher-Townsend, Barbara

Holtmann, Catherine

McMullin, Stephen

Social Sciences

Oxford University Press

Family life is often a place of violence, especially violence against women--in Christian homes as well as in secular ones. Nancy Nason-Clark's sociological investigations allow her to analyze this problem and to reveal how Christian communities respond to family violence in positive ways. She also to suggests how church and secular agencies can cooperate for even more effective action.

The Battered Wife: How Christians Confront Family Violence

Religion & Spirituality

Westminster/John Knox Press

Domestic violence is a leading cause of injury and death to women worldwide. One in five women around the globe is physically or sexually abused in her lifetime, and gender violence causes more death and disability among women aged 15 to 44 than cancer, malaria, traffic accidents or war. Regrettably, the church is not immune to this problem; some studies suggest that incident rates of domestic violence among active churchgoers are not much lower than those among the general populace. Representing the International Task Force on Abuse, formed under the auspices of the Women's Commission of the World Evangelical Fellowship, Catherine Clark Kroeger and Nancy Nason-Clark have listened to the voices of women from around the world and especially to those within the church. Now they help us hear their cries and find concrete ways to respond so that no home will be a place of abuse. In this immensely helpful guide you'll find: 
<ul>
<li>true stories and statistics that illustrate the gravity and extent of the domestic violence</li> <li>a look at what Scripture says about domestic violence, including verbal abuse and patterns of concealment, secrecy and silence</li> <li>a discussion of how proper concerns for Christian families can be twisted to endanger women and their children</li> <li>an assessment of alternatives to suffering in silence in a threatening environment</li> <li>practical tools for pastors and other counselors for interviewing abuse victims and perpetrators</li> <li>outlines for sermons, Bible studies and youth group activities that address the problem of domestic violence</li> </ul> No Place for Abuse is an essential book for pastors, counselors, church leaders, missionaries, evangelists, teachers--indeed, for anyone who wants to make a difference in women's lives.

No Place for Abuse: Biblical & Practical Resources to Counteract Domestic Violence

Kroeger, Catherine Clark

Christian Books & Bibles

IVP Books

Abuse is ugly. It is always wrong. It is never part of God’s design for healthy family living. It distorts relationships and shatters dreams. It creates pain and despair. It never produces hope.You know this all too well--that's why you've picked up this book. Nancy Nason-Clark and Catherine Clark Kroeger know the pain of women who have been abused, especially the unique pain of Christian women who thought it couldn't happen to them. In this straightforward, practical book they supply the answer to the questions you face: 
<ul>
<li>How do I know I need help?</li>
<li>How much of my story should I tell?</li>
<li>Where do I find spiritual support as a victim of abuse?</li>
<li>What help can I find in the community?</li>
<li>How do I get started on the healing journey?</li>
<li>What key steps will I need to take to get on with my life?</li>
<li>How can I understand what help my abuser needs?</li>
<li>How do I learn to trust God again?</li>
</ul> Their advice is solid, backed up by Nason-Clark's professional expertise as a sociologist and Kroeger's as a biblical scholar. Together they supply both here-and-now, step-by-step advice you need to start the healing journey and biblical insights to nourish your soul and sustain you on the path to wholeness.

Refuge from Abuse: Healing and Hope for Abused Christian Women

Parenting & Relationships

Family Relationships

Domestic violence is a leading cause of injury and death to women worldwide. Nearly one in four women around the globe is physically or sexually abused in her lifetime, and gender violence causes more death and disability among women aged 15 to 44 than cancer, malaria, traffic accidents or war. Regrettably, the church is not immune to this problem. Numerous studies suggest that incident rates among active churchgoers are nearly the same as those among the general populace. In this thoroughly revised and updated edition, Catherine Clark Kroeger and Nancy Nason-Clark share with readers a further ten years of experience in listening to the voices of women from around the world and especially to those within the church. They help us hear their cries and find concrete ways to respond so that no home will be a place of abuse. In this immensely helpful guide you'll find 
<ul>
<li>true stories and updated statistics that illustrate the gravity and extent of the problem worldwide</li>
<li>a look at what Scripture says about domestic violence, including verbal abuse and patterns of concealment, secrecy and silence</li>
<li>a discussion of how proper concerns for Christian families can be twisted to endanger women and their children</li>
<li>an assessment of alternatives to suffering in silence in a threatening environment</li>
<li>new chapters on what churches can do and an introduction to the RAVE (Religion and Violence e-Learning) Project website, which provides a wide array of continually updated resources</li>
</ul> Here is a book for all who want to make a difference in women's lives.

No Place for Abuse: Biblical Practical Resources to Counteract Domestic Violence

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Books by Nason-Clark, Nancy