Thanks so much for this post, Staci! I'm thankful for Rachel's voice and the call for all of us to care enough to listen and believe - especially to those who are in vulnerable positions. It is powerful to connect the stories of those who have been victimized to the birth of Jesus, through a vulnerable girl, Mary, who I'm sure very few believed.
Thanks for your reflections on the past 25 years, Bonnie! If anyone would like to dig into the Abuse of Power report that will be considered for synod this year, check out the supplement to the agenda here (You can find the specific recommendations on page 12 and on page 50-78 is the full report).
Thanks for sharing, Dave! I'm not always a fan of labeling and boxing in particular generations. However, technology and culture are always changing and creating different experiences to children who grew up then vs now. And, it is the work of us, the church, to deeply see how the Spirit is calling us to share and be good news to all.
I like Regional Assembly. I'm tired of explaining to my colleagues from outside the CRC that a Classis is a group of local churches - sometimes I even say, its latin for ships sailing together. A neat metaphor, however, I am a fan of names of things to be descriptive of what they actually are. We are not ships anymore (were we ever?)... and after doing a bit more research it seems its origin is more of that found in roman military than anything else... is it inherently imperialistic? I don't know. But, we are established now in this land, and becoming more and more diverse, our minority churches are the fastest growing ones. Perhaps we can be a more hospitable Bi-National Assembly. :)
Mint.com is a great resource for tracking all of your financial accounts, from checkings, savings, credit cards, HSAs, 401ks, and IRAs. Having everything in one place and categorizing helps give some great perspective on exactly how much creeping your lifestyle is causing. It can be great data after tracking it for years - and it automatically creates some visual graphs for you. Seeing this, in my opinion, is a must for creating a sustainable budget.
Thanks for posting, Phil! Definitely a lot of reactions people had to this ad... And in the end, I think Gillette got what they were going for: a needed a publicity boost as all these other razor companies are starting up. And I think they received their publicity.
In my opinion, it appears to me as some good ole common grace in action. The spirit is always at work, bringing the kingdom to his creation... Great to see commercials so different from the past. I think its generally a good thing that these corporations deem it beneficial to challenge problematic sexual harassment norms. I don't mind if it comes from my personal favorite razor company, either! :)
I do do hope though, that we who have the fullness of Jesus make an even bigger splash than Gillette... It's just that Jesus' people often do their work under the radar, in the margins, without all the cameras, and $.
I get that stereotyping a group is not always helpful - I often feel at a loss with the great and unfortunate divisions of our current society. Yet at the same time, in my opinion, when there is need for cultural change, shining a bit of light on an empirical generalization with a statistical basis - is necessary.
I do agree with our article here that violence against women should no longer be seen as a "women's issue." We need a paradigm shift to it being seen as a "men's issue."
From what I understand, there was some good paradigm shifting legislation in 1994, [VAWA] Violence Against Women Act which was drafted by Biden and passed with bipartisan support. However.... due to government shutdown, that act has now expired.....
And, yes, any person can be a victim of violence, no matter their gender. There are always so many stories that are difficult to understand and quantify. However, we also need to step back out of our own personal experiences and understand greater cultural narratives and norms.
These stats are indicative of that:
• 72% of all murder-suicides involve an intimate partner; 94% of the victims of these crimes are female." (NCADV Michigan)
• 1 in 4 women and 1 in 9 men experience severe intimate partner physical violence, (ncadv.org/statistics)
• 1 in 5 women and 1 in 71 men in the United States has been raped in their lifetime. (ncadv.org/statistics)
After hearing Julie Owen's Story in person, (you can view her bio here) and knowing there are so many other women who have also been victimized, we can still do more to create healthy systemic cultural change. I don't see why we should push the pendulum back... and inevitable, even if indirectly, create spaces in which more is at risk for women - who, throughout most of human history, and many still today, did not have the necessary power to remove themselves from horrible situations.
If my position grants me no influence from your perspective, that is ok. However, your insurance company may require it. Many CRC churches are covered by Brotherhood Mutual. Here are their recommendations: https://www.brotherhoodmutual.com/resources/background-screening/who-to-screen/ (fyi, this link was supposed to show up earlier, but it didn't, I just updated it).
It may even be a requirement soon, see this article: What Churches Should Know About New Child Abuse Protection Requirements by Church Law and Tax a division of Christianity Today. And while I hate to even say this... many thought they new a doctor of Olympic gymnasts too. Unfortunately, we all are fallen, some in ways that truly hurt people through the horrific form of sexual abuse - and those that are victimized are not just hurt temporarily, it lasts a lifetime, and its prevalent - check the stats.
It seems we're on different pages when it comes to grammar. I don't take "should" to be that same as "must"... http://www.differencebetween.net/language/grammar-language/difference-between-should-and-must/
Another way to look at it: I want to build a deck on my house, so I am soliciting FineHomeBuilding.com for some vetted ideas/best practices. They said I "should" not place my 4x4 posts into the concrete, rather it should be on top of the concrete footer with composite blocks between them.
Then I submitted the plans to the housing officials and the coding official showed up and said we "must" do it to their specifications (I've worked some in the business and glad I don't have to worry about pulling permits ;).
Safe Church Ministry is here to support churches and help them, and share some best practices - like Fine Home Building does for housing. Safe Church is not in the business of enforcing anything. We don't have that authority. We are pointing towards other experts in the field, we are not assuming authority here. Your classis is there to assist your council accountability, we are not.
I was really hoping to learn about other quality background check services from others with this Network post...
Posted in: May You Know How Much You're Worth
Thanks so much for this post, Staci! I'm thankful for Rachel's voice and the call for all of us to care enough to listen and believe - especially to those who are in vulnerable positions. It is powerful to connect the stories of those who have been victimized to the birth of Jesus, through a vulnerable girl, Mary, who I'm sure very few believed.
Posted in: Becky Jones Joins Disability Concerns and Safe Church
Looking forward to our ongoing work together in Safe Church Ministry! :)
Posted in: Back to the Future! Safe Church at Synod 1994 and 2019
Thanks for your reflections on the past 25 years, Bonnie! If anyone would like to dig into the Abuse of Power report that will be considered for synod this year, check out the supplement to the agenda here (You can find the specific recommendations on page 12 and on page 50-78 is the full report).
Posted in: Regional Pastors Bookshelf: The New Copernicans
Thanks for sharing, Dave! I'm not always a fan of labeling and boxing in particular generations. However, technology and culture are always changing and creating different experiences to children who grew up then vs now. And, it is the work of us, the church, to deeply see how the Spirit is calling us to share and be good news to all.
Posted in: Time to Rename Classis?
I like Regional Assembly. I'm tired of explaining to my colleagues from outside the CRC that a Classis is a group of local churches - sometimes I even say, its latin for ships sailing together. A neat metaphor, however, I am a fan of names of things to be descriptive of what they actually are. We are not ships anymore (were we ever?)... and after doing a bit more research it seems its origin is more of that found in roman military than anything else... is it inherently imperialistic? I don't know. But, we are established now in this land, and becoming more and more diverse, our minority churches are the fastest growing ones. Perhaps we can be a more hospitable Bi-National Assembly. :)
Posted in: Don't Let This Creep Near You
Mint.com is a great resource for tracking all of your financial accounts, from checkings, savings, credit cards, HSAs, 401ks, and IRAs. Having everything in one place and categorizing helps give some great perspective on exactly how much creeping your lifestyle is causing. It can be great data after tracking it for years - and it automatically creates some visual graphs for you. Seeing this, in my opinion, is a must for creating a sustainable budget.
Posted in: Gillette: The Best a Man Can Get?
Thanks for posting, Phil! Definitely a lot of reactions people had to this ad... And in the end, I think Gillette got what they were going for: a needed a publicity boost as all these other razor companies are starting up. And I think they received their publicity.
In my opinion, it appears to me as some good ole common grace in action. The spirit is always at work, bringing the kingdom to his creation... Great to see commercials so different from the past. I think its generally a good thing that these corporations deem it beneficial to challenge problematic sexual harassment norms. I don't mind if it comes from my personal favorite razor company, either! :)
I do do hope though, that we who have the fullness of Jesus make an even bigger splash than Gillette... It's just that Jesus' people often do their work under the radar, in the margins, without all the cameras, and $.
Posted in: Gillette: The Best a Man Can Get?
I get that stereotyping a group is not always helpful - I often feel at a loss with the great and unfortunate divisions of our current society. Yet at the same time, in my opinion, when there is need for cultural change, shining a bit of light on an empirical generalization with a statistical basis - is necessary.
I do agree with our article here that violence against women should no longer be seen as a "women's issue." We need a paradigm shift to it being seen as a "men's issue."
Posted in: Gillette: The Best a Man Can Get?
From what I understand, there was some good paradigm shifting legislation in 1994, [VAWA] Violence Against Women Act which was drafted by Biden and passed with bipartisan support. However.... due to government shutdown, that act has now expired.....
And, yes, any person can be a victim of violence, no matter their gender. There are always so many stories that are difficult to understand and quantify. However, we also need to step back out of our own personal experiences and understand greater cultural narratives and norms.
These stats are indicative of that:
• 72% of all murder-suicides involve an intimate partner; 94% of the victims of these crimes are female." (NCADV Michigan)
• 1 in 4 women and 1 in 9 men experience severe intimate partner physical violence, (ncadv.org/statistics)
• 1 in 5 women and 1 in 71 men in the United States has been raped in their lifetime. (ncadv.org/statistics)
After hearing Julie Owen's Story in person, (you can view her bio here) and knowing there are so many other women who have also been victimized, we can still do more to create healthy systemic cultural change. I don't see why we should push the pendulum back... and inevitable, even if indirectly, create spaces in which more is at risk for women - who, throughout most of human history, and many still today, did not have the necessary power to remove themselves from horrible situations.
Posted in: Background Checks: What Screening Services Does Your Church Use?
Thanks Jane!
Posted in: Background Checks: What Screening Services Does Your Church Use?
If my position grants me no influence from your perspective, that is ok. However, your insurance company may require it. Many CRC churches are covered by Brotherhood Mutual. Here are their recommendations: https://www.brotherhoodmutual.com/resources/background-screening/who-to-screen/ (fyi, this link was supposed to show up earlier, but it didn't, I just updated it).
It may even be a requirement soon, see this article: What Churches Should Know About New Child Abuse Protection Requirements by Church Law and Tax a division of Christianity Today. And while I hate to even say this... many thought they new a doctor of Olympic gymnasts too. Unfortunately, we all are fallen, some in ways that truly hurt people through the horrific form of sexual abuse - and those that are victimized are not just hurt temporarily, it lasts a lifetime, and its prevalent - check the stats.
Posted in: Background Checks: What Screening Services Does Your Church Use?
It seems we're on different pages when it comes to grammar. I don't take "should" to be that same as "must"... http://www.differencebetween.net/language/grammar-language/difference-between-should-and-must/
Another way to look at it: I want to build a deck on my house, so I am soliciting FineHomeBuilding.com for some vetted ideas/best practices. They said I "should" not place my 4x4 posts into the concrete, rather it should be on top of the concrete footer with composite blocks between them.
Then I submitted the plans to the housing officials and the coding official showed up and said we "must" do it to their specifications (I've worked some in the business and glad I don't have to worry about pulling permits ;).
Safe Church Ministry is here to support churches and help them, and share some best practices - like Fine Home Building does for housing. Safe Church is not in the business of enforcing anything. We don't have that authority. We are pointing towards other experts in the field, we are not assuming authority here. Your classis is there to assist your council accountability, we are not.
I was really hoping to learn about other quality background check services from others with this Network post...