Partners or Protagonists? The Transition House Movement and Conservative Churches

Abstract

This article explores the relationship between workers in transition houses (the Canadian term for shelters for abused women), clergy, and church women. It identifies themes of cooperation between churches and transition houses, including women helping women and shared understandings of wife abuse, as well as challenges to cooperation, such as different ideologies and poor communication.Evangelical (conservative Christian) women are both victims of abuse and providers of services to friends, relatives, and others who have suffered abuse at the hands of men (Beaman-Hall, 1995;Nason-Clark, 1995).

Bridging Pastoral Counseling and Social Work Practice: An Exploratory Study of Pastors' Perceptions of and Responses to Intimate Partner Violence

“…It is interesting to note that St. Paul's admonitions, which were used to disempower wives in the 1980s and 1990s (e.g., Wood & McHugh, 1994;Beaman-Hall & Nason-Clark, 1997), are now used to teach egalitarian couple relationships. This indicates that, as suggested by Alsdurf and Alsdurf (1988), pastors began reading scripture "in light of the experiences of battered women" (p. 171).…”

Social Services Offered by Faith-based Organizations in the Post-Secular Society

“…In the sociological literature, as well as in public health issues literature, social interventions offered by faith-based organizations are examined, as it is often the case that victims of family abuse initially address these organizations (Beaman-Hall & Nason-Clark, 1997). Research shows that women who say they are deeply religious, involved in abusive relationships, are more reluctant to end such a relationship, precisely because of the traditional moral values that put the family at the centre of Christian life (Horton, Wilkins, & Wright, 1988).…”

Determinants of Clergy Behaviors Promoting Safety of Battered Korean Immigrant Women

“…The relationship between religion and domestic violence has been extensively studied in the past few decades. Research has demonstrated how patriarchal religious teachings could work as a contributing factor to domestic violence perpetration, influencing congregants' beliefs regarding proper marital roles and acceptable behaviors in marital relationships (Adelman, 2000;Beaman-Hall & Nason-Clark, 1997;Giblin, 1999;Giesbrecht & Sevcik, 2000;Hassouneh-Phillips, 2001). Moreover, the clergy and religious communities' responses to domestic violence have been found to be mostly unhelpful to battered women and justified batterers' behaviors (Giesbrecht & Sevcik, 2000;: Horton, Wilkins, & Wright, 1988Knickmeyer, Levitt, Horne, & Bayer, 2003;Nason-Clark, 1997.…”