Levanta La Voz is an international ministry dedicated to training faith communities to prevent and respond to sexual harm, both as individuals and as organizations. Our name means “Speak up”, and we are doing that by sharing important information about sexual abuse in the 21st century and equipping people and organizations with the tools they need to help those they care for.
The CDC estimates that in the United States 1 in 2 women and 1 in 6 men have experienced some sort of sexual abuse before the age of 18. Those figures are averages, and we recognize that in some communities nearly every man and woman have experienced that sexual abuse. God’s perspective is clear: it is His people’s job to “speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves” (Proverbs 31:8-9) and “intervene to help the oppressed” (Isaiah 59:15-16). But while most Christian leadership knows that it happens, they don’t know what to say or do, so to avoid making things worse by doing or saying the wrong thing, they stay silent. This reflects a god who remains silent and does not care to intervene, making victims feel like the God of the Bible doesn’t care about them and they continue believing the lie that the violence was their fault. To make matters worse, Christian organizations are magnets for people who want to abuse children, and the mistaken notion that it is easy to spot abusers by their appearance lets them harm many children without deterrence.
It is the responsibility of pastors and teachers “to equip God’s people to do his work” (Eph 4:12, NLT), yet many ministry leaders comprehend neither the prevalence of sexual violence, its effects, nor how to combat it in day-to-day life. If you do not have the tools to apply the Gospel of Jesus Christ in the fight against sexual violence, how can you be expected to train God’s people? We have been called to equip you, so that you are prepared to equip others.
Videos:
– Deafening Silence
– This is a Game-Changer
