Trauma-Informed Evangelism: Cultivating Communities of Wounded Healers (Charles Kiser & Elaine A. Heath) - Review
TRAUMA-INFORMED EVANGEISM: Cultivating Communities of Wounded Healers. By Charles Kiser and Elaine A. Heath. Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2023. X + 213 pages.
We know
that religious communities are experiencing declining numbers, while the number
of those who claim no religious affiliation is growing quickly. Some of that
growth in the nones and the dones as they are often known is due
to forms of spiritual trauma. For many Christians, especially in Mainline Protestant
circles, the idea of sharing one’s faith with those outside the church is
considered problematic. It might appear coercive or offensive, especially for
those who have had encounters with hard-sell, conversion-oriented
"evangelists." So, we keep our religious beliefs to ourselves. So,
how might we overcome this evangelistic hesitancy? Are there ways of sharing
our faith with others that don’t fit the stereotypes? After all, there may be
folks out there, especially among the nones or dones, who might welcome
an invitation to participate in a welcoming and inclusive faith community. The key to such a form of evangelism will
require a great deal of vulnerability on our part.
One
possible approach to evangelism that is rooted in vulnerability is what Charles
Kiser and Elaine Heath call Trauma-Informed Evangelism, which is the
title of their recently published book. Charles Kiser is a church planter with Churches of Christ (Restoration Movement) roots and serves as the pastor of Storyline Christian Community in Dallas Texas. He holds a D.Min. in
contextual theology from Northern Seminary. His co-author is Elaine Heath, a former
seminary dean (Duke Divinity School) and professor of missional and pastoral
theology (SMU and Duke), as well as the author of several books about
evangelism. They’ve teamed up to write a very helpful book on evangelism that
is appropriately titled Trauma-informed Evangelism. In this book, Kiser
and Heath offer a different way of sharing faith with folks who might be open
and even interested in the message of Jesus, but who have had too many
traumatic encounters with Christians to make themselves vulnerable enough to
hear the message. In answer to these concerns, the authors of Trauma-Informed
Evangelism speak to the concerns of our day so that as we share our faith,
we can bring into the conversation the realities of trauma that so many face.
The
book Trauma-informed Evangelism emerged out of Kiser's D.Min. dissertation
that was undertaken under the guidance of Elaine Heath. The partnership came
together when Kiser wanted to write about toxic theologies of evangelism while
offering an alternative but wasn't sure how to go about it. In answer to his
question about the feasibility of the project, Heath offered to join him in
writing the book. After all, she had already written about evangelism. So, the
partnership was undertaken, and a book began to form that focused on the
challenge of reaching out to people who have experienced spiritual trauma and
abuse. The audience of this book is, first of all, church leaders and people
studying for the ministry. The second audience is the community of survivors of
spiritual abuse and trauma. That’s not an easy task, but they do an excellent
job of bridging these two very different audiences.
Kiser
and Heath divide their book into three parts. The way the chapters are assigned
shows that Kiser is the lead author. Thus, Kiser provides the first three
chapters in each section, while Heath wrote the fourth chapter. In Part 3,
Kiser again writes the three chapters in the section, while Heath writes an
epilogue that brings the book to a close. Each chapter closes with a series of
discussion questions making this a book useful for reading in community. In the
course of the book, Kiser uses data gathered from two groups of people. The
data is based on responses to surveys and conversations that were gathered
while Kiser worked on his D.Min. project. The first group of respondents is
composed of members of the congregation he helped plant in Dallas, Texas, which
was geared toward ministering with young professionals. The other group of
respondents came out of the board game groups Kiser joined. It’s important to
note that the majority of participants in the latter group were not church
members. In fact, many were atheists and
agnostics. Within both groups, large numbers had experienced some form of
spiritual abuse or trauma. Often that had to do with the person's sexual
orientation. With the current (2023) reaction to the social/cultural gains of
LGBTQ folks among a sizable group of self-described Christians, this is
understandable. If you’ve been attacked by Christians because of your sexual
orientation/identity it will be difficult to hear a word about the person of
Jesus, some of whose self-professed followers have oppressed you. Nevertheless,
it is possible to share the good news, but it requires a great deal of
vulnerability to get the opportunity.
With
this in mind, we turn to the first of the three sections of Trauma-informed
Evangelism. Thus, Part 1, which is titled "Disordered Imagination,"
focuses on matters of culture. It brings into the conversation the data culled
from Kiser's ethnographic studies. These chapters are quite revelatory, as
Kiser shares stories of the pain experienced by his neighbors (chapter 1). Then
there is a chapter that explores spiritual abuse and trauma (chapter 2), which
is a reality that has long existed but is now being exposed in ways never
before seen. That is, we are seeing increasing numbers of spiritual refugees
come out of faith communities. So how is faith to be shared with them? Finally,
there is a chapter dealing with "mediating narratives of supremacy"
(chapter 3). Kiser points out that narratives of supremacy come in a variety of
forms—racial, sexual, and religious. In her chapter in Part 1 (chapter 4), Heath
offers guidance on how the wounds of Christendom might be healed. These
chapters state the problem that affects people who have had abusive encounters
with Christianity. As one might (or should) expect, repentance stands at the
center of this response. Thus, Part 1 lays out the problem faced by those who
wish to share the message of Jesus with their neighbors.
In Part
Two, which the authors title "Healing Imagination," Kiser and Heath
bring theology into the conversation. In setting up this part of the
conversation, Kiser notes that trauma leads to the loss of the capacity to
imagine. Because they are often stuck in the eternal present they are unable to
imagine a better future or experience hope, joy, or delight. Thus, “recovering
the capacity to imagine is critical for healing and flourishing” (p. 73). To
get there Kiser offers chapters dealing with Jesus as a trauma survivor and
finding God in trauma. The latter involves theodicy. That is, coming to an
understanding of God that does not involve traumatization. While the first two
chapters in this section focus on trauma, the third chapter focuses on exploring
restorative images of God (chapter 7). While the previous two chapters explore
the way the cross and resurrection fit into the conversation, here Kiser moves
beyond redemptive language to consider how to speak of God and Jesus with
people who don’t need at the moment to hear a word of forgiveness for sins but
seek a word of liberation from forms of oppression. Central to this message is
one of solidarity on the part of Jesus with those who have experienced trauma.
Finally, in her chapter, Heath writes as a theological educator, noting that
seminary education is largely incapable at present to educate trauma-informed
leaders. This serves as a call for the formation of leaders who can effectively
minister with those who have been traumatized.
Part Three
is titled “Embodied Imagination.” In the three chapters in this third section, Kiser
writes about being co-witnesses with Christ, flipping hospitality, and becoming
contemplative evangelists. In the chapter on being co-witnesses with Christ, Kiser
speaks of three stages of recovery. This begins with “establishing safety.” Any
form of “trauma-informed evangelism” must begin with building trust and safety
so that stage two can be entered into. That stage involves “witnessing the
story.” That is, the survivor of trauma is invited to share the story of their
trauma (witnessing). Finally, with the story shared, then the final stage is
entered into. That involves reconnecting to ordinary life. This likely involves
becoming part of communities where survivors experience a sense of belonging. In chapter 10, titled “Flipping Hospitality,”
Kiser speaks of becoming the guest. When thinking of evangelism, those who engage
in it often see themselves serving as the host. But here, it will need to be
flipped. This can lead to radical forms of inclusion. Kiser’s final chapter
(chapter 11), is titled Contemplative Evangelists.” The focus here is on
self-differentiation, such that one can become wounded healers and engage in
conversation with the traumatized with compassion and empathy. Finally, in the
Epilogue Heath speaks to the creation of these communities of belonging. This
is the key—traumatized folks experience a need to find communities where they
can belong and find healing of one's traumas.
With so
many people leaving Christian communities having been traumatized by their
experience (many pastors have experienced trauma also and have left the
church), this is an important and helpful word. If we are to share good news
with folks who have been traumatized then we’ll need to engage in the kind of
missional work incorporated here in the book by Elaine Heath and Charles Kiser
aptly titled Trauma-Informed Evangelism: Cultivating Communities of Wounded Healers. The subtitle captures well the focus of this book. The word
evangelism is too often connected to hard-sell evangelistic efforts that can be
coercive, manipulative, and hurtful. Engaging in something different will
require the creation of faith communities that have the imagination to move
forward from one’s experience of woundedness, so as to participate in God’s acts
of spiritual healing. If the church is to respond positively to the needs of
the moment, then pastors and church leaders need to acquaint themselves with
resources such as this book by Charles Kiser and Elaine Heath. While many who
have left the church due to spiritual trauma will never re-enter it, others
might be open to becoming part of communities of inclusion and healing. This is
a book that will help guide the creation of such communities.
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