Content warning: mention of sexual assault
A few years ago, I listened to a woman speak at a fundraiser for an agency in my community that provides support and care for survivors of sexual and domestic violence. The speaker shared her own story of rebuilding her life after rape. She also offered these instructions, “if someone tells you their story, their experience of assault–this is what you say: I believe you. It’s not your fault. You are not alone.”
I can almost hear Jesus whisper those words to the unnamed woman, surrounded by the men who were ready to stone her for her supposed adultery. “I believe you. It’s not your fault. You are not alone.” Maybe we can imagine the Good Samaritan kneeling next to that person beaten and robbed and left on the side of the road, “I believe you. It’s not your fault. You are not alone.”
As followers of Jesus, this ought to be our script when we are confronted with stories not just of sexual assault, but every kind of injustice, violence, and oppression that seeks to dehumanize, denigrate, and destroy God’s precious people.
This message is excerpted from “The truths we tell,” by Sara Olson-Smith in the July 2020 Café online magazine.
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