Children throughout the US and the world suffer child abuse or neglect enabled by religious ideology every day. The effects of this maltreatment are serious and long-term, and for some, they are fatal. Religious child maltreatment can occur in any religious environment, yet it’s important to understand which children are… Read More
Mormon wants to end church’s “masturbation interviews”
What if you learned that your young son or daughter had been grilled about sex or masturbation without your permission? As a parent, I would panic. And then I would start asking questions; Who is doing this, why are they doing it, and is my child okay after enduring such a… Read More
Janet Heimlich speaks at Ethical Humanist Society of Chicago – Oct. 8, 2017
High-profile cases such as the child sexual abuse scandals in the Catholic Church and “faith healing” child death cases in some fundamentalist congregations have drawn attention to a serious yet misunderstood problem: religious child maltreatment or RCM. What can we do to protect children from harmful religious influences and ensure… Read More
Just because parents appear to be “good Christians” doesn’t mean they’re not abusing their kids
When the parents of David Turpin learned that he and his wife Louise had been allegedly torturing their 13 children, they were “surprised and shocked,” because their son and daughter-in-law were “a good Christian family.” We hear it time and time again. People express shock and disgust that parents who… Read More
Left Behind: When will Baptists catch up with #MeToo?
At a Southern Baptist mega-church in Memphis, pastor Andy Savage admitted to having a “sexual incident” with a 17-year-old girl twenty years earlier. The congregation’s response? Silence? Boos? No, a standing ovation. The admission came after the now-grown woman, Jules Woodson, posted a January 5 #MeToo account on social media,… Read More
Advocating for Survivors of Cal Farley’s Boys Ranch
“A sense of safety is vital to a child’s ability to reach his or her full potential.” … Read More
Experts’ Comments on BREAKING THEIR WILL
“Breaking Their Will is a powerful and deeply disturbing book, wide ranging in its exploration of religiously based physical and mental abuse of children past and present, and richly informed by both personal and scholarly reflections and insights. This book will have a profound impact upon the consciences and actions of readers from a… Read More
An Open Letter to the Alabama Baptist Pastor Group
More than 100 Alabama Baptist pastors have signed a public statement denouncing “sexual abuse, assault, harassment, and exploitation of women.” Christa Brown, a survivor of sexual abuse, an outspoken critic of the Southern Baptist Convention, and a board member of the Child-Friendly Faith Project, responds. To Baptist Pastors of Alabama: I… Read More
What does your religion say about hitting children?
Where does your place of worship stand on the issue of corporal punishment of children? If you attend a conservative church, synagogue, or mosque, especially if it’s in ons of the southern “bible belt” states, chances are it supports hitting children as a form of discipline. When the school district… Read More
We want your opinion!
We have some exciting news! The CFFP has begun to make big changes to our website. When it’s done, it will not only look very different, it will function very differently, too. In a nutshell, anyone who wants to learn about this issue will be able to quickly and easily… Read More