One of the more common buzz phrases I’m encountering on the Internet is the term “church hurt.”

The problem, as with many popular phrases, is the true meaning of “church hurt” is hard to nail down, meaning anything from true abuse of power and spiritual neglect to a rightful accountability check of sin.

Not only that, but since we are called to look not only to our own needs but also to the needs of others (Phil. 2:4), the intensely personal narrative surrounding church hurt often becomes more about the person who experienced (real or perceived) injury than it is about the God who heals every sorrow and is so near the brokenhearted.

To further complicate issues, many in the church hurt movement seem determined to lump the entire entity of “church” in with what they deem a broken system, rotten to its core.

And so, we must examine all of these claims in the light of Scripture. Is all church hurt equal? Should every claim be taken at face value? Is there still such a thing as a healthy church?