Spiritual abuse can happen within any religious organization or within a family.

Spiritual abuse comes from a foundation of shaming and humiliating someone into complying to what the abuser is wanting to accomplish, which is keeping control and power over their victims.

What is spiritual abuse?

– A set of beliefs against someone in order to manipulate that individual into agreeing or complying to those beliefs. This can happen in combination with other types of abuse.

– Twisting scriptures in order to manipulate and/or gain control of an individual.

– Tactics used are humiliation, invalidating, or demeaning someone who doesn’t agree with certain spiritual aspects.

– Intimidating others to be submissive to religious authority without questioning or disagreeing the person’s authority.

– Falsely accusing others or labeling them as having no faith in God, being disobedient, being an enemy of one’s church, or trying to make others fall away from the church.

– Being accused of being possessed or having a devil.

– Forbidding individuals from having any association with friends or family members because they are perceived as a threat.

– Sharing information with only certain “privileged” people.

– Expecting others to conform to dangerous religious practices.

– Shunning, persecuting, and/or excommunicating individuals, and expecting, encouraging, forcing others that are still in the group to do the same by spreading rumors, threats, and other lies.

– Refusing medical or psychological treatment by claiming God will heal.

– Seducing someone or sexually abusing someone with claims that God is wanting this done may also occur.

When an individual has been a victim of spiritual abuse, healing can take place. Overcoming the effects of spiritual abuse can be difficult and challenging but with the support of a caring therapist, the healing can be achievable.