The Religion and Sexual Abuse Project is a collaboration between scholars of religion with a range of geographic and tradition expertise for understanding the dynamics of sexual abuse and misconduct in religious communities. Project leaders understand the deep harm caused by sexual abuse as well as the importance of situating sexual abuse in broader cultural, historical, and social contexts. This project aims to support fruitful conversations between different stakeholders in a range of domains including academia, faith-based community, media, and advocacy.
Project leaders all have PhDs and hold positions at colleges or universities. Some are members of faith communities, while others have no personal relationship to the communities they study. Their views are not unified. Participants in this project are committed to transparency regarding their own positionality.
The Religion and Sexual Abuse Project is funded in part by the Henry Luce Foundation. These funds support eleven distinct academic projects, a series of interdisciplinary public-facing conferences, scholarly workshops, collaborations with advocacy organizations, a set of pedagogical resources, and an online resource hub.
Scholars: Amanda Lucia (PI), Kent Brintnall, Ann Gleig, Andrea Jain, Amy Langenberg (grant team); Abimbola Adelakun, Nivea Castaneda, Jack Downey, Holly Gayley, Juliane Hammer, Kathleen Holscher, Boyung Lee, Nami Kim, Sara Moselener, Christine Pae (partner scholars); Bishop Accountability, FaithTrust Institute, Heartwood, Inform, IntoAccount (partner organizations)
According to RAINN—the Rape, Abuse and Incest Network--which is the largest anti-sexual violence network in the U.S:
> an American is sexually assaulted every 73 seconds
> 1/6 women have been the victim of rape or attempted rape
> 1/33 men have been the victim of rape or attempted rape
> 1 in 2 transgender individuals have been sexually abused or assaulted
Given these statistics, we recognize the likelihood that conversations related to Religion & Sexual Abuse Project will include survivors of sexual assault. Some of the material presented may be distressing, and potentially triggering. We encourage you to do what you need to take care of yourself, and seek help.
National Sexual Assault Hotline - (800) 656-4673
SNAP Network (https://www.snapnetwork.org)
RAINN (Self-care After Trauma - https://rainn.org/articles/self-care-after-trauma )
UCLA Rape Treatment Center (https://www.uclahealth.org/rtc)
https://www.rainn.org/about-national-sexual-assault-telephone-hotline
Call 800.656.HOPE (4673) to be connected with a trained staff member from a sexual assault service provider in your area.
Logo (above) by Caylin Yorba-Ruiz. Caylin is an empowerment artist focused on creating accessible art for survivors of trauma and for individuals seeking improved mental health and wellbeing. She received a BA in Studio Art and a BA in Media & Cultural Studies from University of California-Riverside. Follow Caylin’s work on Instagram at @caylin.perry or on Etsy @CaylinPerryArt.