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When I was in high school, the Left Behind series by Jerry B. Jenkins and Tim LaHaye were all the rage. I remember heading to the Sam’s Club on release day to get the newest book in the series, and I’d devour it quickly. I was wrapped up in the rapture, and so were a lot of people. At the time, I attended a Catholic high school, and one of my classmates saw me with one of the Left Behind books. He asked me about it and had a lot of specific questions about rapture theology.

I’ve always been the kind of parent who has been as transparent as possible with my kids. For example, I’ve never shied away from telling them how much I make, something that so many of us were told was none of our business while we were growing up. In my opinion, it’s best to include my kids in difficult or challenging discussions, too.

Have you ever stumbled upon a situation online where one Christian was calling out another Christian publicly for sin? I’ve seen this when someone holds a belief that doesn’t align with Scripture, but I’ve also seen instances where people are publicly accused of abuse or of covering up abuse. Inevitably, someone in the comments will say, “You should follow Matthew 18.” When I see comments like that, I usually ask myself, “Does Matthew 18 even apply here?”

Emotionally healthy spiritual leaders are hard to come by and there is just something about leading a religious flock that draws emotionally vacant, power hungry, and glory seeking manipulators, like moths to a flame.  Just as with many types of abuses, there is a spectrum of intensity and hurt that befalls victims of spiritual abuse, but how can we identify and avoid leaders like these?

La expresión «disciplina eclesiástica» o «disciplina en la iglesia» me recuerda a la expresión «cama de clavos», porque ambas evocan sentimientos de angustia y dolor, y ambas incluyen palabras que parecen completamente incongruentes. Las camas deben ser cálidas y cómodas, no provocar heridas punzantes; y la iglesia debe ser un lugar seguro para aprender sobre Jesús en una comunidad amorosa, no un recinto para el castigo.

How do we know if church discipline is being used against us instead of for us?

As is often the case with whistleblowers, we sometimes feel guilt and regret for our actions. If you’re in a situation where you feel like you may need to call out spiritual abuse, I hope this is an encouragement to you; the road may be long, and you may lose some people along the way, but find hope in the knowledge that you are doing what is biblical and right. I also want to point out that for some of you, you may not feel safe calling out the abuse. I’ll offer some suggest