Presbyterians Against Domestic Violence Network 2015 Resource Pack
October 2015
Dear Sisters & Brothers in Christ,
Each October, we are reminded by the many domestic violence awareness activities in all of our communities, that intimate violence is still very much a reality of our times. Perhaps you are involved yourself in Take Back the Night, a candle light vigil, the Clothesline Project, the Silent Witness Initiative, Empty Place at the Table, or other national or local programs.
Presbyterians Against Domestic Violence Network (PADVN), one of the 10 networks of the Presbyterian Health, Education and Welfare Association (PHEWA), urges Presbyterians to be agents of healing by collaborating with our community allies in ending the violence. The church, bringing a faith perspective to this collaboration, has a unique voice in this effort.
People from every walk of life; including race, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, age, economic class, religious affiliation, levels of ability, education, and citizenship are represented in the statistics related to intimate violence. Individuals in our congregations are victims, survivors, perpetrators, and by-standers. We need to do our part in saying clearly that abuse is contrary to God’s will and that it tears at the very fabric of human dignity and the covenant we have with God to care for one another, especially those who are most vulnerable.
This year, PADVN leadership has chosen to look at domestic violence awareness and resources through the lens of the day between Good Friday and Easter... Holy Saturday or Silent Saturday. It was the day that Jesus laid dead in the tomb. It was the day when hope was shattered. It was the day of deep mourning.
Yes, we are Easter People, but we need to acknowledge that many people live in Silent Saturday, a time of fear and dread. They find it difficult to live with the shouts of Alleluias when their lives are lived out in a very different reality.
Among our resources, we are including Pamela Patrick Cole’s sermon, “Saturday People,” which was published in the 1999 Journal for Preachers (Volume XXII, Number 2, Lent). She writes, “When people in our midst - maybe even we ourselves - are in Saturday, we want to shut them up. When someone is in Saturday, it is a heart-wrenching place to be. Saturday is a place when you are not so sure of the outcome. Saturday is when you are terrified of what is to come... ”
Two seminary professors, each who have written about Saturday Time, have different ideas on who resides there. Dr. Shelly Rambo in her book, Spirit and Trauma; A Theology of Remaining, writes about persons suffering from trauma. Dr. Miguel De La Torre teaches and writes extensively that Saturday is the place where people on the margins live in hopelessness. Both of these authors expand the theme we have chosen.
Oct 11, the 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time, is designated on the Presbyterian Planning Calendar
as the Sunday emphasis for Domestic Violence Awareness. The month of October is a good time
to make your voice heard because it will dovetail with the activities in our communities, but this
is not the only time to preach, teach, and pray about domestic violence...any Sunday is
appropriate. By breaking the silence, we send the message that victims/survivors are not alone;
that our congregations are safe places to come for help.
The resources that follow are presented as prompts to help you and your congregation think through how to be a place where truth is spoken and silence is broken.
The Rev. Nancy K. Troy
for the leadership of Presbyterians Against Domestic Violence Network (PADVN)