- Feb 5, 2002
- 181,091
- 65,372
- Country
- United States
- Gender
- Female
- Faith
- Catholic
- Marital Status
- Married
- Politics
- US-Others
For the sake of the flow of this article, I will be primarily referring to the abuser as male and victim as female, but abuse is used by both genders.
Domestic violence is not always easily recognized, even for the survivor of the abuse, and especially when the abuse is not physical or sexual in nature. But there are warning signs individuals can look for in suspected abusers.
Before I began my work in domestic violence recovery and awareness, these indicators were present in people I knew — I just didn’t recognize them. For instance, a woman I knew at church could never attend women’s Bible studies or go to women’s retreats because her husband refused to watch the children. It wasn’t until later I realized this was an isolation tactic.
As the Church, we have a responsibility to defend the weak and uphold the oppressed (Psalm 82:3-4, NIV). Recognizing a victim of abuse can be difficult, however, as the individual may not be truthful about the harm she is experiencing out of fear and safety concerns, and her abuser likely hides the abuse when around others. While you may not witness overt abuse occur, there are some behaviors you can listen for and observe that often indicate abuse, especially when several of these behaviors are present. By recognizing these common signs of abuse, you can save someone’s life.
Here are 10 common indicators of abuse:
1. A push for quick involvement
Continued below.
Domestic violence is not always easily recognized, even for the survivor of the abuse, and especially when the abuse is not physical or sexual in nature. But there are warning signs individuals can look for in suspected abusers.
Before I began my work in domestic violence recovery and awareness, these indicators were present in people I knew — I just didn’t recognize them. For instance, a woman I knew at church could never attend women’s Bible studies or go to women’s retreats because her husband refused to watch the children. It wasn’t until later I realized this was an isolation tactic.
As the Church, we have a responsibility to defend the weak and uphold the oppressed (Psalm 82:3-4, NIV). Recognizing a victim of abuse can be difficult, however, as the individual may not be truthful about the harm she is experiencing out of fear and safety concerns, and her abuser likely hides the abuse when around others. While you may not witness overt abuse occur, there are some behaviors you can listen for and observe that often indicate abuse, especially when several of these behaviors are present. By recognizing these common signs of abuse, you can save someone’s life.
Here are 10 common indicators of abuse:
1. A push for quick involvement
Continued below.
10 warning signs of an abuser: How the Church can recognize abuse and save lives
By recognizing these common signs of abuse, you can save someone s life