Sandy Grant and Kara Hartley,  who lead the Sydney Anglican Church’s response to domestic violence, are expressing lament and grief at the findings of new national report into intimate partner violence within church communities.

The new report into Domestic Violence in the Australian Anglican Church indicates the number of people who are at least occasional Anglican church attenders and are victims of intimate partner violence is the same as or higher than in the wider Australian community. 

Other key findings include:

• Evidence that Perpetrators misuse Christian teachings and positional power,
• Clergy reporting their confidence in their personal capacity to respond to IPV as low to moderate,
• Our leaders are well informed about the breadth of intimate partner violence and that it is more men than women who commit the violence,
• While many Anglican victims did not seek support from Anglican church, those that did were helped/felt supported.

There are three aspects to the report:

• A research report on the prevalence of domestic violence, 
• A survey of key clergy and lay leaders,
• The experiences of family violence of those with a connection with Anglican Churches. 

Contacts:

1800 RESPECT - A 24 hour national sexual assault, family and domestic counselling line.

Lifeline 131114 - For anyone across Australia who is experiencing a personal crisis or thinking about suicide.

Further discussions:

Caring pastorally for domestic abuse victims - Jenni Woodhouse

Abuse in the marriage of ministry leaders - Jenni Woodhouse

The difference between domestic violence and dysfunctional relationship - Magdalena Liem

Sermon: 

Dominic Steele teaching on Domestic Violence

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