Violence Among Us: Ministry to Families in Crisis Brenda Branson and Paula J. Silva Foreword by Tim Clinton

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In the Christian community, one in every four women experiences family violence. As the awareness and incidence of domestic violence increase, however, pastors find themselves ill-equipped to deal with the crisis. There is very little training, if any, provided in seminary on this subject. The challenge for every pastor and counselor is to go beyond a casual awareness of the problem to the harsh reality of this epidemic, to move past apathy to conviction, and to turn empathy into compelling action. Addresses the questions: How common is domestic violence? What keeps a victim trapped? What is the effect of family violence on children, teens, the church community, the workplace, and society as a whole? How can the church take a proactive stand to prevent family violence in future generations?

"In this book, Brenda and Paula reduce the problem down to bite-size pieces so that even regular people like you and me will discover that, ‘Hey I can do this. I can make a difference. I can help save someone.’ This is not a read and shelve kind of book; this is a ‘read and do’ kind of book."—Steve Dresselhaus, Pastor of the La Paz de Cristo Church in La Paz, Mexico, Director of the La Paz Women's Shelter, TEAM Missionary

Table of Contents:
Chapter 1       Discovering Her Journey—Validating Her Pain
Chapter 2       Understanding the Dynamics of Family Violence
Chapter 3       All Abuse Hurts!
Chapter 4       Why Does She Stay?
Chapter 5       Inside the Mind of an Abuser
Chapter 6       Effects of Family Violence
Chapter 7       Helping Men Who Are Victims
Chapter 8       Terror in the Parsonage
Chapter 9       Counseling Dos and Don’ts
Chapter 10     The Church’s Role and Response
Chapter 11     Spiritual Direction
Chapter 12     What Does the Bible Say?
Chapter 13     Preventing Family Violence

Publicity and Marketing:

• Print ads in Christian Counselor, Church and Domestic Violence, and various publications directed to church leaders
• Direct mail campaign to church pastors and pastoral counselors
• Radio and television interviews including WMBI Moody Network and WYLL both in Chicago, and Focus on the Family Radio
• Domestic violence seminars and workshops for churches, women’s groups, and conferences
• Articles in relevant publications

About the Authors:
Brenda Branson and Paula J. Silva together founded FOCUS Ministries, Inc., a not-for-profit organization that offers help and hope to women who are struggling in dysfunctional relationships, especially those involving domestic violence. Branson is director of FOCUS Women’s Center in Madisonville, KY and Silva is director of FOCUS Women’s Center in Wood Dale, IL. Both are active members of the American Association of Christian Counselors, and they regularly lead training events, conferences, and workshops on the topic of family violence.

Branson has published over 800 articles and resources on domestic violence, including one she co-authored with Silva in Christian Counseling Today Magazine in 2005.

Silva holds an MA in Guidance and Counseling, and serves on the Inter Faith Advisory Committee for Chicago Mayor Daley’s Office of Domestic Violence.