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Listed below are sites
about:
clergy/spiritual sexual abuse
general
sexual abuse
associated
health and therapy information
sites
about recovered/repressed memories
miscellaneous
sites
sites for
families of abusers
Click on any topic above to jump to those links, or scroll down to view the whole page.
Clicking on the site links below will take you away from this site. If you don't want to do that, you can right-click on the link and select "open in new window" to retain access to both this site and the link. Otherwise, when you've gone to another site, click the back button on your browser to return here. Naturally, although I make every effort to ensure that links posted here are ones that take care in dealing with triggering material, I cannot guarantee it, and therefore advise caution when accessing the links.
Clergy/spiritual sexual abuse sites
Many support groups from the 1990s no longer exist or have changed names or structure in the decades since. Below are some which still exist, along with a few recent additions, and it may also be worth searching for some of the following people who were in the forefront of the disclosure and advocacy movement back then: Frank Fitzpatrick, Phil Saviano, Terrie Light, Barbara Blaine and David Clohessy.
- http://brokenrites.org.au Broken Rites is Melbourne-based and Catholic-centred, but has been active since the mid-1990s and has an enormous database of information and resources.
- http://bravehearts.org.au Bravehearts has been around since the 1990s, and although it has a wider focus than clergy abuse, is an excellent resource for both survivors and family/friends to whom a disclosure is made.
- People in Glass Houses, on Facebook, is run by Tanya Levin, the author of the book of the same name. Tanya disclosed her abuse at the hands of Hillsong Australia decades before the recent disclosures and ongoing scandals. She is an excellent resource for Pentecostal victims or those who want to stay informed about the court action against Brian Houston and other Hillsong figures.
- https://www.childabuseroyalcommission.gov.au/religious-institutions 2015 Royal Commission into Institutional Abuse website, including much of the documentary evidence tendered to the Commission.
- http://www.snapnetwork.org SNAP (Survivors' Network of those Abused by Priests) This organisation is based in Chicago, but has lots of links to other organisations that may help (including some for non-clergy sexual abuse), and lots of information and news on their site.
- http://advocateweb.org Advocate Web is a storehouse of information and support for any victim of professional sexual exploitation. One section of their work is aimed at clergy abuse victims.
- http://www.survivorsfirst.org which now redirects to http://sexabusevictims.com A site by practising US Catholics who are working towards cleaning up the church. Lists more than 1600 priests convicted of abuse. Note: Though there isn't much (if any) god-talk on the site, if you're a victim who is dead against anyone still being a church member, some parts of the site's purpose may bother you.
- http://www.bishop-accountability.org Catalogues the abuse in the US Catholic Church and provides copies of many secret church documents.
- http://www.advocateweb.org/publications/articles-2/clergy/ A range of articles on clergy sex abuse, including one on how the boundaries get crossed so that mentor becomes molester, why victims can't object, the effects of boundaries being crossed, and the problems with the way churches still tend to deal with it, both at parish and hierarchical levels, and another on why it's not an affair when it's a clergy relationship with an adult parishioner.
- http://www.silentlambs.org/ Silentlambs is a non-profit organisation dedicated to exposing pastoral abuse within the Jehovah's Witnesses. The organisation founder was an elder in the JW church until his discovery of child molestation in the church led to attempts to silence him from speaking out. Silent lambs also has a Facebook group.
- http://www.clergyabuseaustralia.net/perplist.htm An incomplete register of Australian offenders. Part of the site you are currently accessing.
- http://archive.boston.com/globe/spotlight/abuse/documents/ The Boston Globe's Pulitzer Prize-winning site on the US (esp. Massachusetts) clergy abuse scandal. Includes more than 11,000 pages of documents the church wanted to keep secret, but the court ordered to be made public access.
- http://nic.funet.fi/pub/doc/religion/occult/old/magick/INCOMING/Christian-abusers A list of clergy convicted for sex crimes, mainly US state by state, but some overseas crimes listed.
- http://www.spiritualabuse.org There can be a strong correlation between sexual abuse and spiritual abuse. This site looks at the likely indicative factors of spiritual abuse, and offers a self quiz. Clergy abuse victims may discover some of the reasons why they remained in an abusive situation. The author is a former member of a Pentecostal Church, where she was spiritually abused. She is, however, still a Christian, and her website links and webring links may trigger some abuse victims.
- http://childpro.org/ A site about child sexual abuse cases. Several church-related cases listed, including the currently largest claim ($750mill) in the world, against the Mormon Church in Virginia, USA.
- http://brissc.org.au/resources/ritual-abuse/ Information about ritual abuse in Australia.
- various sites Biderman's Chart of Coercion. Originally designed as an analysis of the techniques used in brainwashing, Biderman's principles are also applicable to the grooming and abuse process.
- http://www.survivorship.org Ritual Abuse Support for victims of ritual abuse and mind control. Has a large number of free links, and includes membership facilities.
- http://www.caic.org.au/general/recstage.htm This site from the Cult Information and Awareness Centre lists the stages of recovery on exiting a cult situation. While the situation may not be quite the same, the emotional stages described are very accurate for clergy abuse victims' recovery too. Well worth a read. (Follow the link to the archived site.)
- http://unitingnetworkaustralia.org Uniting Network is the support network of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transsexuals within the Uniting Church in Australia. Many of them have suffered sexual abuse within the church, and continue to suffer abuse because of their sexuality. They understand well the difficulty of reconciling faith and experience. WARNING: This is a Christian site. Do not follow this link if you think it may trigger you.
- http://www.motherjones.com/politics/1997/11/unfaithful/ An article on the problems priests face when they leave the Church to marry. Includes some facts on the differences between the unrelenting way the Church treats them and the supportive way the Church treats convicted child molester priests.
- http://www.freedomofmind.com/ A site dedicated to exposing mind control, including in churches. Some news articles cover sexual abuse in churches.
- http://www.survivors.org.au/ An Australian site for sexual (and other) abuse survivors. Huge list of resources and opportunities for linking up with other survivors.
- www.samsn.org.au Australian organisation for male survivors of child sexual abuse.
- http://www.malesurvivor.org The (USA) National Organisation on Male Sexual Victimisation website. Information and support for male victims. Includes details about conferences and discussion forums.
- http://www.xris.com/survivor/msb/ An excellent resource for male victims, with lists of organisations, information and other web resources. Includes webring links.
Associated health and therapy information
- http://www.metanoia.org/suicide/ Suicide If you're feeling suicidal, please read this page. (Be warned that they do mention calling a minister for help, but don't be put off by that - just read it as "call someone you trust"). The page also has links to online counsellors that you can email for help. Naturally, you may not get an answer straight away. If you feel you can't hang on for 24 hours, phone someone now. In Australia, you can call Lifeline 24 hours a day on 13 1114 (local call from anywhere in the country).
- http://depression-screening.org/mainWelcome.htm A site about depression, with stories, symptoms and treatment, self-test, links, and information in Spanish.
- http://www.emdr.com Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing Information on EMDR, which is one of the most effective and trauma-free forms of therapy for abuse. It is important to work with a highly-skilled therapist.
- http://www.thoughtfield.com TFT (Thought Field Theory, or Callahan technique) Information about TFT
- http://www.giftfromwithin.org Gift From Within is a non-profit registered charity dedicated to supporting victims of PTSD and their helpers. The site gives access to information, videos and tapes, other resources and a network of penpals.
- http://www.emerge.org.au Many survivors of sexual abuse also suffer from myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME, or chronic fatigue syndrome). This Australian site contains resources and support.
- http://members.tripod.com/DID_survivors/ Resources for DID/MPD sufferers. Primarily the home of an email discussion list, but also has resources, information and coping strategies.
- http://www.overcomingpain.com Survivors of abuse often suffer from chronic pain. This site offers information on understanding pain, treating pain and responding to the pain sufferer. It also outlines historical perspectives in analysing how we perceive pain.
Other recommended topics to google are grief, self-harm, bipolar disorder, borderline personality disorder, MPD/DID, repressed memories.
- http://www.calmcentre.com.au Calmcentre A site dedicated to finding calm in times of stress, and maintaining a sense of calm
- http://www.metanoia.org/imhs/ Is online counselling a good idea? This site looks at the problems, benefits, things to be wary of, and many other questions, and also lists therapists who are happy to work with clients via the Internet.
- http://www.metanoia.org/suicide/samaritans.htm The Samaritans work by email as well as by phone, post and in person. They are trained helpline volunteers, available 24 hours a day. If you need to talk to someone, but don't want to pick up the phone, this is an alternative. It is, of course, not quite as immediate in response, although most emails are answered within a few hours. The site also has links to sections that deal with suicidality issues.
- https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/ The National Library's Trove resource has digitised newspapers from the early days of the colony to about the 1960s. While most survivors of abuse from that period are no longer with us, the resource is still noteworthy for its access to early mentions of church functions and priests.
Sites for families of abusers.
It may seem odd to include this section, but many times family members of abusers find themselves classed with the perpetrator as "bad" and hence are in danger of being marginalised just as much as victims of the abuse. Discovering a member of your own family is an abuser must be a terrible moment, and although this site is not dedicated to supporting those people, these contacts are offered as a way of acknowledging the hurt and pain they may be experiencing.
- http://www.clergyrecovery.com For sex addicted clergy and their spouses
Contact addresses:
* Lineal Victims is a support group for family members of
perpetrators. The contact is Phillis L Fine 14258 Dinsmoor Drive,
Saint Louis MO 63017 phone: (314) 576-7462. To call from
Australia, dial 0011-1 in front of that phone number.
* Clergy Families in Crisis. 245 E 13th Ave, Spokane, WA. 99202.
USA. Phone: 509-624-5156. A project of the Spokane Council of
Ecumenical Ministries designed to "network clergy families
and church leaders to promote compassionate and just response to
family members in cases of misconduct, divorce, neglect, abuse,
mental breakdown or other crises."
Main page * My story * Survivors' bill of rights * Who we are * Info for survivors * Motivating thoughts * Forgiveness and apologies * Protocols * Protection skills * News and laws worldwide * Statistics * Post-traumatic stress disorder * Books * Contacts * Links * Email me