Pastoral Care for Survivors of Violence and Abuse

This is an introductory course on pastoral care to prevent and heal violence and abuse at the individual level. The course introduces students to the circumstances and factors which give rise to violence in the family, particularly spouse and child abuse and its effects. The course will focus on the pastoral care of family members who have experienced violence, including physical abuse, psychological abuse, sexual abuse, deprivation or neglect, and exposure to the extrajudicial killing of a loved one. Key skills in defining, identifying, assessing, and intervening are taught within a psychospiritual framework developed to prevent the victimization of children and vulnerable adults and to initiate processes of healing and recovery for survivors.