This course explores the sexual abuse crisis in North American Christianity, both as it has emerged in the media and as church leaders and laypeople have responded to it. We’ll pay particular attention to the power dynamics of abuse, the impact upon the Christian body writ large, and the relation between the crisis and U.S. politics.
For over a quarter-century, journalists have broken story after story about sexually abusive clergy in the U.S., many of them serial abusers of children and adolescents. While most accounts have focused on Catholic priests, many have also emerged of abusive evangelical and other Protestant ministers. The stories have illuminated how church bureaucrats have consistently protected abusers and subverted the efforts of victims and their families to seek recompense, accountability, and justice. These protections have often succeeded because of churches’ political connections to law enforcement and legislators who have helped hide perpetrators and stymie survivors. Together we will analyze this cautionary tale about religion and politics by contextualizing it within the broader history of Christianity in the United States and beyond. Is this a case simply of a few bad apples or of institutional corruption? How has the church’s response been shaped by fear of scandal, antipathy toward secularism, and theological teachings on gender and homosexuality? How does sexual abuse fit into the history of the church as a hierarchical institution? What challenges has the crisis posed to people of faith who are committed to the church, and can trust be repaired? Readings include legal case studies, internal church correspondence, victims’ statements and criminal justice reports, documentary films and memoirs, and both journalistic and scholarly analysis of the clergy sex abuse crisis in the U.S. church. We will also hear directly from a variety of visiting guests.
WARNING: Many of our readings contain difficult accounts of abuse as well as the subsequent trauma most victims suffer. If this subject matter is triggering for you and you’d like to speak with me about whether or not to take it, I’ll be glad to help you think through it.
Course History:
Fall 2022: Taught by Professor Marie Griffith
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It is valuable for anyone, whether or not you have a religious background, as the topics of abuse and cover–up, while maybe easier to see in religious contexts, are ubiquitous in culture. The readings are fascinating, and help create space for dialogue and wrestling with the complex issues that always surround abuse and power.
— Fall 2022
This is one of the best courses I have ever taken at WashU. The professor is incredibly knowledgeable about the subject and has her own research in the field which has given her excellent connections for class speakers. You get a good overview of many different perspectives of the abuse crisis, from the theological to the social to the legal. The course materials are often less academic and more understandable than other courses and were excellent sparks for in–class discussion. In class, the professor does a great job facilitating discussion and balancing adding her own insights and pushbacks.
