

It is virtually the same as any other cause of C-PTSD. Triggered by certain religious terms or thoughts.Being uncomfortable with culture outside of the church you attended.Feelings of displacement if you are leaving your faith.Won’t spend time with people of differing religious views.Refusal to think on their own, allowing others to think for them.Behaviors out of fear of church discipline.Inability to make a solid decision on their own.But on the inside they are falling apart. Those with religious trauma syndrome can appear to have everything under control. What Does Religious Trauma Syndrome Look Like? You will need to run very far away from the ones that don’t.

But the healthy churches will take care of it. But they were worlds apart in how they used religion.Īt the end of the day, anywhere that has people who are influential has the potential for Religious Trauma Syndrome. And without a lick of healing for his new family unit.īoth churches had nearly the same doctrines and were in the same denominational family. He remarried 6 days after we received our divorce papers. And because I, with the support of my church, said we could not put our family at risk anymore, his church told him he had grounds for divorce because I was not meeting his needs as his wife. Once he was a member of that church, they tried to force me to let him back into the house without any healing or willingness to work on our marriage/family. My ex’s answer was to leave the church and find one that would allow him to continue the control and abuse. The majority of the church was loving and supportive through our family’s trials. And those people blindly followed him rather than listening to the church leadership’s guidance on a now very public problem. He rallied a few of his long-time friends and convinced them he was being unfairly treated but had no idea why. As my ex’s abuse became known, the church leadership worked hard to find Biblical answers for us to find healing. But most of the members were conscientious, loving Christians. It could very well be in the church policy of that church.Īs an example, the church my ex-husband and I attended for most of our adult lives was not perfect. In a church that promotes damaging religious concepts, you will find Religious Trauma Syndrome to be much more prominent. But because the nature of church is to welcome all, it is impossible to make sure that unhealthy people never appear on the scene. In a healthy church, RTS can occur, but less frequently because the leaders and membership will be emotionally and spiritually healthier as a general rule. While the above is true, it does cause a spectrum of damage done. Why? Because all churches, no matter how good or bad, are made up of imperfect people. It could even happen unrelated to church–such as a deeply religious household that holds their own independent religious beliefs. No denomination or type of church is immune. Religious Trauma Syndrome can occur literally anywhere there is religion or even talk of religion. Where Does Religious Trauma Syndrome Occur? If you liked this article, I think you will also love the following articles:.An Unfortunate Outcome of Religious Trauma Syndrome.How Can You Heal From Religious Trauma Syndrome?.How Can You Guard Yourself From Religious Trauma Syndrome?.What Does Religious Trauma Syndrome Look Like?.Where Does Religious Trauma Syndrome Occur?.It is so important to find counselors and support that will help you to see the true love of God through the evil of how man distorts His Word and find true freedom in your faith. That is incredibly unfortunate because leaving God is not the answer when it is man that screws up religion.

Some will choose to leave their faith behind because of these atrocious circumstances. They struggle to regain their emotional and physical health after being abused by church leadership and members. So what is Religious Trauma Syndrome and how can you heal in a way that will rescue your spiritual journey? RTS is when someone is “beaten down” by authoritarianism and unbiblical religious rituals. And that has caused religious trauma syndrome to be a huge issue among Christians worldwide. But there are also many churches that do great destruction to the people they are supposed to be trying to help. Just to be clear, there are many good churches. But unfortunately, many people find them to be exactly the opposite. Churches are supposed to be a haven, a safe place for all.
