Hi
There is a global movement which encourages everyone to wear black on Thursdays to highlight the incidents of violence against women and girls. Black symbolizes the resilience against abuse (sexual and other). There are those who wonder what church and/or Christian spirituality has to do with such actions or campaigns. Today’s Holy Nougat offers a perspective
“Remember those in prison, as if you were there yourself. Remember also those being mistreated, as if you felt their pain in your own bodies.” Hebrews 13:3 NLT
What if we were being mistreated? Can you imagine a gun being fired into your uterus just because you are a casualty of war? Ask this year’s Nobel Peace prize winner about the number of girls he’s treated. Or, imagine being held captive in the basement of a house for 9+ years along with two other women simply because you were in the wrong place at the wrong time. The women were eventually rescued a few years ago in the USA.
These are extreme cases, nevertheless, they encapsulate some agonies many humans face. Some face daily abuse, others only rarely and some are the abusers. We are called to empathize and be in serious prayer for them all – the spouse beater/wounded spouse, the murderer/survivor/murdered, the rapist/victim/survivor; the predator/prey and all others caught in such viscous cycles (including the witnesses).
So today, although it’s not Thursday, and we might not be part of the movement, let us pray for victims, survivors and perpetrators that God’s healing grace will be their portion emotionally, mentally, spiritually, and physically.
Thanks so much
Good morning
In Christ’s love and grace . . .
