Our blog contains ACNAtoo statements and updates, community resources written by the ACNAtoo team, articles on abuse-related topics by outside experts, and more.
Loose Canons: The Trouble with Title IV
Title IV of the proposed Canons deserves close attention, as it concerns church discipline and how the Diocese investigates and responds to misconduct. We’re analyzing this Title on its own because of the weight it carries for all future discipline, abuse investigation, and pursuit of justice among clergy and laity in the Diocese.
Loose Canons: The Devil in the Details
The central question is this: do the numerous proposed changes address the longstanding governance problems in the UMD — problems which contributed directly to the 2019 abuse allegations mishandling that ultimately led to the launch of ACNAtoo in 2021?
How to participate in your diocesean governance
As the Diocese of the Upper Midwest (UMD) prepares to deliberate on the new Constitution and Canons, it is essential that lay people in the diocese participate in the process. Yesterday was the first day of the UMD’s scheduled two-week window (November 13-27) for collecting public feedback about the proposed Canons.
Loose Canons: Unsure Foundations
Keeping an eye on the laws of our church is part of our duty to the most vulnerable in our midst. It is never enough to rely on church leaders’ good intentions or verbal assurances regarding the church’s procedures. It’s not just for canon lawyers – church governance concerns everyone.
Hidden in Plain Sight: Responding to Domestic Violence
The pressing matter at hand is the need to educate women on what abuse is, how to understand it isn’t their fault, and that they are not responsible for fixing their abusive partner. That need for education extends to churches and church leaders as well. The Church has historically done an abysmal job of supporting women trapped in—or leaving—abusive relationships. This needs to change.
Done and Left Undone: One Year since Husch Blackwell
Anniversaries serve as important milestones that mark what has been done and what has been left undone. We offer a brief summary of some ongoing cases regarding abuse allegations and pending institutional response in the ACNA, each of which is tied up in a drawn-out canonical process with no end in sight.
Statement of Commitment to LGBTQ+ Abuse Survivors
ACNAtoo seeks to walk alongside and advocate for people who have survived abuse in the ACNA or at the hands of ACNA leaders. In particular, we desire to be a safe haven for any survivors who have not found loving support inside the ACNA church community.
Community Grooming in the Church
How can pastors and other church leaders, tasked with roles that require discernment, character, and spiritual care, be so incapable of identifying abusers, safeguarding the vulnerable, and responding appropriately to disclosures? How can entire communities that are in many ways safe havens for hurting people fall in lockstep behind these leaders, ostracizing victims who rallied the courage to come forward, seek help, and try to prevent their abuser from harming others?
Failures in Mandatory Reporting: A Case Study From the UMD
UMD leaders have claimed there were no mandatory reporting failures on their part, but their reasoning doesn’t stand up to scrutiny. In this blog post, we spotlight church leaders’ ongoing refusal to acknowledge their failures, 3.5 years later, and offer analysis to educate all churchgoers on child abuse mandatory reporting requirements, because the Church across denominations has too frequently failed to protect the vulnerable.
A Message of Thanks from Cherin Marie
As we prepare our victim impact statement for Mark Rivera’s February 10 sentencing hearing, my family feels empowered and strengthened by your support and we are so grateful for every one of you.
We began this journey feeling utterly alone and abandoned, but we are ending it surrounded by more love, truth, and light than we ever thought possible.
Rez Fails to Notify Parents of Sexual Predator
Multiple people have provided ACNAtoo with a text message that a Church of the Resurrection member sent to congregants, warning them of a convicted sex offender who has been attending Rez for the past three years. To date, we are unaware of any action on Church of the Resurrection's part to address this concern.
UMD Abuse Mishandling Summary
Given the recent conclusion of the Husch Blackwell investigation, we feel this is an important time to revisit the evidence previously documented by ACNAtoo, much of which has been corroborated by Husch Blackwell and the testimony of Upper Midwest Diocese employees.
A Statement on the Husch Blackwell Report
In this statement, we limit our analysis to concerns about the insufficient investigation scope, which includes a lack of assessment or recommendations and significant evidence gaps related to the ACNA’s refusal to waive attorney-client privilege. We conclude with a number of questions those concerns raise.
Reader Reflections, Part Three
I have heard some people claim that ACNAtoo seeks to damage and destroy ACNA churches. I disagree with this. Hidden wrongs cannot be addressed. Unnamed injuries cannot be repaired. Healing and justice can only come when things are exposed by the light.
Reader Reflections, Part Two
With regard to abuse, abuse in the church is everyone’s problem. With regard to church systems and processes, organizational excellence should be every congregant’s interest.
Reader Reflections, Part One
When I started reading about the initial ACNAtoo situations, they felt familiar; my soul knew those experiences, even though they were happening to different people. I knew the devastation of realizing that the church that seemed so perfect and so loving was not as loving to some people. Over the years, I've found that truth resonates within my soul. I felt the truth ringing.
An invitation for community reflection
As ACNAtoo concludes our first year and reflects back on what we’ve each learned, we’d love to hear your reflections as well.
For her
The joy of seeing children being children, seemingly uninterrupted by the darkness of which we adults were more than aware, reminded me of Jesus telling us that the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. It is to children that God has revealed the message of the gospel, as opposed to the wise and sonorous Religious Guys ™.
Organizational Impression Management in the Church
When churches face a crisis, they are presented with two choices in their public response. They may choose truth and transparency, even if it negatively impacts them, or they may opt for impression management tactics that portray a positive status or image.
Loving the abused with the love of Christ
I learned that a place where I had felt safe was in reality incredibly dangerous, particularly to abuse survivors willing to seek justice and care, and I lost all the connections and support systems there at a very vulnerable time in my life. I imagine that dying of cancer is never easy, but dying of cancer while retreading a mental health crisis related to abuse trauma is a one-two punch I dearly hope no one else in the UMD is currently experiencing. And yet, though I personally avoided becoming the target of any abuse while attending Church of the Resurrection, I could do nothing other than leave that support and community behind.