Sons of Abraham

My mission is to expose child sexual abuse by any means possible. I read about it and share that information through Twitter and Facebook. Child sexual abuse permeates nearly everything I write even when I write about synchronicity and the paranormal. Nothing stirs my blood more. Nothing surprises people more whenever they hear about an individual case in the news. Even so there is no activity to which people in general are so blind. I know. I watch. I see how passive people are in textbook situations. Their inattention to the attention strangers give their children makes me want to grab these people’s shoulders and shake them. “Put your phones away and pay attention to your children!” So I write. I write in the hopes that someone will read one of my stories and become more alert. Passivity is a difficult habit to break so I find I need to write and report and repost a lot in order to help people chip away at it.

Pope Francis recently stated that pedophilia is pervasive in families as well as in the Church. This is true. However, Church teachings and religious upbringing often provide the basis for family life, especially in conservative families. Some families still live by the standard that the man is the head of the family. His decisions are absolute and cannot be challenged. His wife and children belong to him, as does the house, the car and even the family pet. Everyone in the household must abide by the beliefs of the ‘man of the family.’

My research into abuse for my novel THE ALTERED BOYS CLUB revealed The Women’s Rights movement of the 1970’s as the catalyst for legislation against domestic violence. Spousal and child assault and battery were criminalized for the first time. So was sex with offspring. Society frowned upon incest, but didn’t deem it criminal until the 1970’s. Astounding.

The reports of child sexual abuse by priests now include abuse by ministers of other denominations as well as rabbis. Recent reports from England include charges against various celebrities and government officials. One element of child sexual abuse that hasn’t changed is the fact the perpetrator is someone the child has met, known, and trusted.

Children will override their own instincts to submit to a parent or to trust someone their parents trust. I write to break blind trust. I write to stir the blood of adults as mine has been stirred. I write with the hope someday I will be free to move on and write about something else.

We cannot continue to act as sons of Abraham blindly sacrificing the lives of children.