Category Archive

Yesterday morning I got up early and worked on the sermon I was going to present later at the Saint Cloud UU Fellowship. Planning a short trip like this in January or February (or even in March!) can be risky here in Prairie Star, but the weather was cooperating for the most part–temperature in the low 30s and no snow. But there was a LOT of fog. Not quite enough to cancel the trip, but enough to make driving on I-94 West a bit of an adventure. One good thing about driving on Sunday mornings, though, is that there’s never much traffic. So a little fog didn’t hurt.

Once I got to Saint Cloud was warmly received. This was my second visit to the fellowship, and I was happy to see some new faces (as well as some old friends). They’re working on some growth plans right now, and the congregation seems to be poised to move into a new phase which includes being more visible in the community. At any rate, the sermon went well, I think. It’s a little long and needs a new ending, but I think it’s the one I’ll be using for my next preaching gigs (in Northfield and Fridley–both in Minnesota).

After the service we had a soup and bread lunch, and then I met with about a dozen church leaders to talk about safe congregations and right relations. I’m happy to say that the congregation has purchase the Reducing the Risk II resource kit, and one of their members is ready to take the exam to get the Safety Award in Reducing the Risk of Child Sexual Abuse. It was about 2:00 p.m. when the meeting was over. By that time the sun was out and the temperature had reached the high 40s, making the trip back home a pleasant Sunday afternoon drive.

So here’s the plan for getting a majority of religious educators in Prairie Star participating in the Reducing the Risk program in general, and the Safety Award in Reducing the Risk of Child Sexual Abuse in particular. The district has purchased 25 Reducing the Risk resource kits to distribute to PSD congregations at a considerable discount (the kits normally cost $50 plus shipping–PSD congregations can order them from the district for $25 plus $5 shipping). In addition to the kits themselves (a DVD set, a training manual, and reference book), the district will also pay the tuition for religious educators to take the online examination required to receive the Safety Award through the Institute of Church Safety.

Completing the program does take an investment of time (I spent most of Wednesday reading the online sessions, taking self-evaluation quizzes and comprehensive reviews, and completing the 25 question final examination). But it’s an investment that’s well worth it. And since I’ve already completed the program, I’m ready to assist any PSD religious educator in the program. So, for $30 total Prairie Star religious educators receive the RTR resource kit, are eligible to enroll in the online seminars of the Institute of Church Safety, and are free to take the final examination needed to received the Safety Award. Again, the goal is to have at least half of the religious educators in Prairie Star trained in this program. For more information, send me an e-mail or call me at (612) 230-3274.

It may not look like much, but it could be one of the most important documents a religious educator can have. It’s the Safety Award in Reducing the Risk of Child Sexual Abuse from the Institute of Church Safety, an online training program from reducingtherisk.com.

I took the training myself yesterday, passed the comprehensive examination, and was rewarded with the above PDF (love the Old English font, don’t you?). Okay, I was rewarded with a comprehensive overview of the issues surrounding protecting our children from preferential and situational abusers, too. Here’s a look at what’s included in the training:

(1) Understanding the Problem of Child Sexual Abuse and the Church

Child sexual abuse can happen in any church regardless of size, location, or affiliation. In this four-lesson seminar, we examine the nature and impact of child abuse, the profile of molesters, why churches are vulnerable, and the legal theories used to prove liability.

(2) Church Liability for Child Sexual Abuse

This three-lesson seminar examines the unique vulnerability of churches to liability for acts of child sexual abuse. The first lesson highlights factors that make churches susceptible to incidents of child molestation. The second lesson looks at the current legal environment and reviews factors that contribute to church litigation. Lesson three examines the most common legal theories that are used to sue churches when child sexual molestation occurs within church settings.

(3) Selecting and Screening Church Staff Members to Work with Children

To ward off potential molesters, and to ensure adequate legal safeguards that rise to the level of reasonable care, every church should implement an effective screening program. This five-lesson seminar starts by reviewing the profiles of child molesters, and then examines the screening process for clergy and paid employees, the use of criminal records checks and other background checks, and concludes with developing an effective screening program for volunteer workers.

(4) Principles of Supervising Children and Youth

This seminar begins by examining the profile of child sexual offenders. It then focuses on the problem of negligent supervision, and explains how key principles can be used to establish a basis for reasonable care. Attention is given to general versus specific supervision, and assessing levels of risk using the concepts of isolation, accountability, power, and activities. The seminar establishes five general principles of supervising children and youth to reduce the risk of child sexual molestation. At the conclusion of lesson 7 is a safety checklist that reviews the material for the entire seminar.

(5) Reporting Child Abuse

This two-lesson seminar reviews legal obligations church staff members may have to report child abuse, and how a church can develop a reporting procedure. Attention is given to understanding the differences between mandatory and permissive reporters, when a report must be made, factors to consider in making a report, and establishing a reporting procedure for church workers.

(6) Responding to Allegations of Abuse

All churches and ministries need to focus on the prevention of child sexual abuse. Realistically no practical prevention strategy is 100 percent effective. An accusation of child sexual abuse may occur in any church. Churches need to develop a premeditated plan or strategy to respond to sexual abuse allegations. This seminar examines nine key issues that church leaders should consider in responding to an allegation of abuse.

Tomorrow I’ll post more about Prairie Star’s plan to have a majority of the religious educators in the district be recipients of the Safety Award.