Spiritual Abuse And Seven Other Terms Defined

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If you have found my website, you may be wondering if you, yourself, have experienced spiritual abuse or religious trauma. Or, maybe you’re a pastor, parent or parishioner just wanting to learn more about these terms you keep seeing on social media.

Welcome!

I hope this brief introduction to vocabulary being used in religious, mental health and recovery circles today will be a useful tool.

These Experiences Are Not New

First off, spiritual abuse, religious trauma and other terms found in this article are not a new thing. People are not playing victim cards all of a sudden or jumping on some “sexy deconstruction trend.” Abuse within religious organizations, churches and leadership has been around as long as there has been organized religion…or people for that matter.

There are books written specifically about spiritual abuse dating back decades ago with documentation of sex abuse, abuse of power, religious manipulation and more for centuries. People have long recognized spiritual abuse and the resulting trauma, but these experiences were never given a name. Because we live in the Information Age, people have been able to realize that these experiences are not limited to their church or community and are in fact, systemic. As our cultures have advanced, so has our understanding of science, mental health and the spiritual connectivity.

Many of these terms have yet to be recognized by the American Psychological Association, but as a result of collective raising of awareness and repeated public use, major strides have been made in recent years to educate and inform the public as well as mental health professionals. Gratefully, qualified research is also on the rise.

 
 
 
 

Attributions are given at the end of each definition if the definition is not original to me.

 
 

Abuse:

A misuse of a thing which someone uses to cause harm or distress. A pattern in which one individual uses fear, intimidation, violence or any other harm to control another.

Spiritual Abuse:

Using one’s power or authority to control, guilt, manipulate or coerce another with claims of Biblical or spiritual truth. This includes psychological or emotional manipulation and coercion through the use of spirituality which undermines (or removes) a person’s autonomous spiritual empowerment and focuses on external spiritual performance.

Trauma:

A response to a real or perceived experience or threat where you feel or are powerless.

Religious Trauma:

Religious trauma results from an event, series of events, relationships, or circumstances within or connected to religious beliefs, practices, or structures that is experienced by an individual as overwhelming or disruptive and has lasting adverse effects on a person’s physical, mental, social, emotional, or spiritual well-being. – Global Center for Religious Research*

Adverse Religious Experience:

Any experience of a religious belief, practice, or structure that undermines an individual’s sense of safety or autonomy and/or negatively impacts their physical, social, emotional, relational, or psychological well-being. - Religious Trauma Institute

Deconstruction:

Dissecting beliefs, behaviors and lifestyles to discover for oneself what is real, true or right while detoxing from unhealthy mindsets and structures.

Reconstruction:

A rebuilding of one’s belief system, often after deconstruction, usually existing until peace can be made that one has worked out their new way of thinking, living or believing.

Spiritual Identity Disruption TM:

When what you belied or were taught about faith or spirituality collide with an opposing lived experience – which may include, abuse, trauma, and hypocrisy. This polarization cannot be reconciled using the existing foundation thus causing a disruption of identity and crisis of belief.

If you would like to explore these topics further, here is a list of places to start:

*Rebekah has had no association with GCRR since 2023.