Ritröð Guðfræðistofnunar - 01.09.2011, Blaðsíða 13

supposedly the faithful followers of Jesus who said, „Let the little children
come to me, and do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the
kingdom of heaven belongs.“ It is the betrayal of trust by one who should
be trustworthy compounded by the betrayal of trust by an institution that
should be trustworthy.
How can we explain this persistent contradiction which only intensifies
the damage to individuals and further corrodes the credibility of the
churches? Dr. Judith Herman provides some insight into this situation in
her classic text, Trauma and Recovery.
To study psychological trauma is to come face to face both with human
vulnerability in the natural world and with the capacity for evil in human
nature. To study psychological trauma means bearing witness to horrible
events. When the events are natural disasters or ‘acts of God,’ those who
bear witness sympathize readily with the victim. But when the traumatic
events are of human design, those who bear witness are caught in the conflict
between victim and perpetrator. It is morally impossible to remain neutral
in this conflict. The bystander if forced to take sides.
It is very tempting to take the side of the perpetrator. All the perpetrator
asks is that the bystander do nothing. He appeals to the universal desire to
see, hear, and speak no evil. The victim, on the contrary, asks the bystander
to share the burden of pain. The victim demands action, engagement, and
remembering.2
Christian scripture tells the story of the bystander in Luke 10:29-37. In
response to the question, „And who is my neighbor?" Jesus tells the Good
Samaritan story. The religious community leaders pass by; it is the religious
outsider, the Samaritan, who stops and takes the side of the victim. When a
clergyperson abuses a congregant and this reality is disclosed, the church is
the bystander and is forced to take sides. Unfortunately all too often it has
chosen to use its power to take the side of the perpetrator. An institution
like the church (usually with power) will too often seek to minimize and
deny any complaint and seek ways to blame the victim. In pursuing this
agenda, the church purports to act in its own interest and in contradiction
to its own values. (see below) In spite of all of this, victims, survivors and
their allies are speaking out; the bell has been rung; the silence has been
broken. The false center no longer holds.
What are the factors which define this institutional failure?
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