The Particulars of Spiritual Abuse: Mind Control and Loyalty

Last year, Rachael Clinton Chen and Dr. Dan Allender dove into a series on the dynamics of spiritual abuse and forms of trauma that can emerge in situations of spiritual abuse. This week, we're sharing with you their conversation about some of the particulars of spiritual abuse including mind control, dogmatism, suspicion, and loyalty. One of the first categories you'll hear them unpack is mind control, including the implications and consequences of abusive mind control which distorts desire for attunement in order to grow suspicion and mistrust.

All of these systems and categories, however, are ultimately about control—structuring power and authority in such a way that spiritually abusive leaders have total control over the minds and bodies of those in their communities. Ultimately, though, Dan and Rachael invite us back to that which spiritual abuse most fundamentally sabotages: hope.

Resources:

• Listen to an episode of the podcast where Dan and Rachael address listener questions about spiritual abuse.
• Read a blog post, "Dogma, Abuse, and Embodied Theology"

Read a blog post, "Tuning in to the Unseen"