Tagged With "religious beliefs and practices"

RADICAL GRACE – WHAT I LET GOD SEE AND ACCEPT IN ME ALSO BECOMES WHAT I CAN SEE AND ACCEPT IN MYSELF. AND EVEN MORE, IT BECOMES THAT WHEREBY I SEE EVERYTHING ELSE. ~ RICHARD ROHR For the past three months, I’ve been driving through various parts of Florida witnessing events and gatherings of communities committed to creating safe, loving, trauma informed, and trauma healing spaces. On Friday February 22nd, I was in Tarpon Springs, attending the monthly gathering of Robin Saeger’s...

It was a sunny fall afternoon a few years ago. A friend posed a very interesting question as we ate our dinner on the deck at a local restaurant. “What do you think, Chris, about the possibility of a whole group of people experiencing a reaction to trauma? Like, maybe our whole nation is still traumatized from 9-11-01, or Katrina, or maybe just a whole host of cascading traumatic events?” We spoke at some length about what a reaction to trauma would look like in a society at large, and it...

Life is hard. “In this world you WILL have trouble,” Jesus said. The ability to successfully face the hardships that will inevitably come to us will determine our level of satisfaction, joy, and peace. Resilience isn’t just a desirable trait, it’s absolutely essential. And, it turns out that scripture has a lot to say about this essential quality for successful living. There are many passages we could examine to illustrate the point, but the letter from James is one of my favorites. Eugene...

To quote a friend who just gave her testimony at our church about her own struggles with mental health misdiagnosis and recovery, she was told after her first hospitalization, “This won’t be the first time you deal with this.” Our trauma is always with us.

“WHAT ABOUT FAITH-based communities—where are they in your plan?” is a question we have gotten when we describe our ACEs prevention initiative in New Mexico called 100% Community. And, it’s one we are pleased to answer. We are often as ked what role religious organizations have in our work. It is estimated that there are approximately 350,000 religious congregations in the United States, representing a wide range of beliefs. With approximately 350,000,000 people in the country, that’s about...

This isn’t the first time in history that people who call themselves Christians have been doing awful things. It isn’t the first time many of us who still seek meaning in our faith find ourselves questioning what our belief system truly stands for in the real world. Yet it feels a particularly acute moment nonetheless, one in which the need to speak out against hypocrisy and injustice is stronger than it has been in recent memory, and when the temptation to bail on belief seems on many days...

Room erupts in applause for the grandmother of witness William Kellibrew during July 11 House Oversight and Reform Committee hearing. The power of personal stories from witnesses and committee members fueled the July 11 hearing on childhood trauma in the House Oversight and Reform Committee* throughout the nearly four hours of often emotional and searing testimony and member questions and statements (Click here for 3:47 hour video). The hearing was organized into a two panels—testimony from...

Leaders from across the Sunshine State will take part in a “Think Tank” in Naples, FL, on Monday, August 6, to help create a more trauma-informed Florida. The estimated 350 attendees will include policy makers and community teams made up of school superintendents, law enforcement officers, judges, hospital administrators, mayors, PTA presidents, child welfare experts, mental health and substance abuse treatment providers, philanthropists, university researchers, state agency heads, and...

As so many disturbing and traumatic events involving children have been covered by the media recently - it caused me to reflect on my own journey of becoming trauma-informed. Now that I know what I know, I cannot view such stories in a trauma- un informed way. I've found myself in discussions with others who may, or may not be, trauma-informed. It turns out this one factor predictably correlates with the type of conversation that ensues around any topic covered by the media where children...

How do you root out the lies that were planted in your head when you were traumatized as a child? Most of us come to believe things that are not true about ourselves in the midst of childhood trauma and then carry that belief unconsciously, perhaps...

I'm looking for some research in the area of children's belief in God, faith and religion when a child experiences trauma.  I've been commissioned to write an article for a major children's ministry publication and can no research in this area. I...

Wow, I missed this. Is this meeting happening again? When? Peace, Jaime

Hi Ed, I'm excited that you want to share the information about childhood trauma with the church. It is my belief that God wants to heal the Church from its trauma wounds so that we can reach out to others and offer healing. I've started a movement and written a spiritually integrated trauma recovery model to use in churches and any location open to understanding more about ACE impact. I have a book and workbook on Amazon.com (Break EVERY Stinking Chain! Healing for Hidden Wounds) and offer...

Yes, Chris. That is the next step for someone who has found healing. They have lived through trauma and damage, so, in my belief, they are highly qualified to move forward and "use their pain for good." We find in our participants, that after finding that healing, they then feel much more worthy and accepted wherever they go, including the church. Concerning Chained No More participants, we sometimes have them come in and observe the next set of classes, share a little of their journey of...

ACEs initiative participants in communities where there is tension between the community and law enforcement will want to join Becky Haas in a compelling conversation on law enforcement, ACEs science, COVID-19 and the Black Lives Matter movement and protests. Haas is a nationally recognized adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) science initiative builder and trainer. She and colleagues Renee Wilson-Simmons, the head of the ACE Awareness Foundation of Memphis, Tennessee, and Maggi Duncan,...

Sixty years ago this summer I told. My parents fought to have my perpetrator removed from the organization - to no avail. They were accused of being the ones with the problem because they could not forgive, forget and move on. Thank God, my parents did move on. They left that group. Their belief in me and their sacrificial actions gave me the foundation to thrive. However, the abuse became flesh and dwelt inside me and for decades I suffered great gynecological problems. Recent studies link...

We have so many wonderfu https://www.acesconnection.com/fileSendAction/fcType/0/fcOid/508261416693856202/filePointer/508261416693856263/fodoid/507698389112989542/Coping%20With%20Stress%20During%20the%20COVID-19%20Pandemic%20One-Pager_Accesible_English.pdf l resources shared by members. However, a few of you have asked me for help in retrieving them. Here's several of the most commonly shared ACEs handouts, info graphics and one pagers, with links to download. PLEASE share yours! I'm working...

Join us next Wednesday for two excellent CTIPP CAN presentations to begin our 2022 lineup. Baltimore Councilman Zeke Cohen will discuss the work, started by the late Congressman Elijah Cummings, that is making the city of Baltimore trauma-informed. Claudia Remington will describe new trauma informed initiatives by the State of Maryland, including legislation that created a Commission to develop a comprehensive strategy to make the State trauma informed. We will also report on the first...

Strengthening the wounded soul can improve psychological and physical wellbeing and help to complete the recovery process. Although ACEs, understandably, can numb feelings, including spiritual feelings, once healing has progressed, spiritual feelings can often be successfully cultivated.

Reflections: Advent and the Work of Mirror Ministries invites you into a transformative journey that melds the rich themes of Advent with the powerful mission of Mirror Ministries. Founded on faith and fueled by compassion, Mirror Ministries has grown from humble roots into a beacon of hope, dedicated to responding to domestic minor sex trafficking with the love of Christ. The name "Mirror Ministries" bears a profound significance, rooted in both scriptural imagery and the organization's...