Contact Us
If you would like to find our more, offer support or get involved please use the form below. An email will be sent to Bob Munro who will respond promptly.
Links and resources for dealing with the issue of sexual abuse:
1800Respect - National Help Line
Wikipedia
Broken Rights
Brave Hearts
Books:
Confronting Power & Sex in the Catholic Church by Bishop Geoffrey Robinson
Review (Catholica)
Hell on the Way to Heaven by Chrissie Foster and Paul Kennedy
Review (Catholica)
Still Standing - A Mother's Fight to Bring the Catholic Church to Justice by Chrissie Foster and Paul Kennedy Review (Penguin Books)
Descending into Hell and Rising Again - A child's journey from abuse by a priest, through priesthood to marriage by Michael T. Leahy Review (Journal of the Australian Catholic Historical Society)
Child Arise! The Courage to Stand - A spiritual handbook for survivors of sexual abuse
by Jane N. Dowling. David Lovell Publishing, Melbourne (2015).
This is a very honest account of how child abuse can affect a person in adulthood which can manifest itself at the intersection of 3 dysfunctional matrices: spiritual; psychological; social.
But as asserted in this personal story the ugliness of the experience cannot negate the beauty of the human being who is made in God's image, in fact Dowling explains in Scriptural terms the truth that humans are born with genes of divinity and so ugliness cannot have the last word in the mind of God. Whilst the church has been reluctant to acknowledge this, the fact is: God loves us into wholeness even when hate destroys the child's self image, because God's deeply profound knowledge of us can heal the mental chaos and the broken body of the afflicted person.
Part one of the book encourages the reader to listen to how a personal story can be transformed by a loving God as explained in Scripture; part two explains how to work through personal issues such as panic attacks, concealed memories that influence unconscious behaviours, how to live with grief and loss and how to find the courage to speak up. Dowling tells of her own mental struggles prior to appearing before the Royal Commission and she gives language where many people may have no words to express what they are going through.
This book offers exercises in how to discover one's true worth, it offers hope and consolation, encouragement and spiritual fulfillment. It is a powerful resource for healing to survivors and gives valuable insight for family, friends, and supporters.
Review - Trish Martin
Telephone:
Bob Munro on +61 424 212 420