"The F-word"

If you were abused in an evangelical faith group, see this movie. You will see some part of yourself in it.

If you’re someone who wonders why abuse survivors don’t just get over it, see this movie. You may begin to understand.

“All God’s Children” tells the story of missionary kids who were abused at the Mamou boarding school in West Africa. They were isolated there for 9 months each year while their parents did what they believed was God’s work. They were part of the Christian and Missionary Alliance, an evangelical denomination based in Colorado Springs.

From the opening sounds of “Onward Christian Soldiers,” the film sings a deeply familiar siren song, but it is a song that cast children onto the rocks of horrific abuse. They were the sacrifice in their parents’ evangelical mission to spread the gospel and save African souls.

Of course, the parents assumed the children were in good hands. The school was run by other missionaries who were doing God’s calling, just as they were.

Like so many others in evangelical churches, these children were taught from their earliest days that the only way was to “trust and obey.” After all, everything that happens is for a reason according to God’s plan.

So there in the Mamou wilderness, they lived under the dark cloud of believing that, if they didn’t “trust and obey,” they might cause others not to be saved.

Years later, as adults, when they tried to seek accountability within the faith community, they encountered the endless stonewalling of religious leaders.

One woman talked of the “re-victimization” inflicted by leaders’ refusal to address the issues and by their evasions and lies. “They impacted me as much as being wounded as a child,” she said.

Another described denominational leaders’ recurring theme: “You’re going to hurt the name of Jesus.” Sound familiar? The Mamou survivors were made to feel that their “little problem” of being abused and molested was “minor” and would take attention away from “shining light on the deep problems of the world.”

They were repeatedly told, “It wasn’t God that did this – you shouldn’t blame God.”

But then they were also told: “God’s going to be impacted if you tell the story -- the world’s not going to be attracted to God.”

“Well, you can’t have it both ways,” said one woman. Either God’s a part of it, or He’s not. And if He’s not, then there’s “no shame for God” in the telling of it.

Finally, there was that whole “forgiveness” thing that got thrown at them. Religious leaders wanted them to immediately offer up forgiveness and put it all in the past.

Forgiveness is “the F-word for the evangelical community,” said one woman.

It’s strong language, but if you’re someone who was abused in an evangelical faith group and who tried to report it, you know exactly what she means.

“It’s not that victims are against forgiveness,” she explained. “Victims are against forgiveness as the solution to the problem. Because then the problem will go on and on and on, and as long as every victim gives forgiveness, the organization doesn’t have to address the issue.”

And to that I say, “Amen.”

Against overwhelming odds, the Mamou survivors persisted in seeking to compel religious leaders to acknowledge the systemic abuse and to ensure that others would not endure what they did.

They didn’t achieve “justice” – far from it -- but their stories stand as testimony to the transformative power of truth-telling.

Ultimately, they brought about a denominational “commission of inquiry” that, in turn, inspired the creation of similar commissions in other Protestant groups.

In effect, the Mamou survivors left the beginning of a small trail through the wilderness.
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See the trailer for “All God’s Children.” Find upcoming screenings. Buy the DVD or download.

See director Luci Westphal's review of this review.