Sexual violence: Religious officials are fighting the phenomenon

For the first time in Israel: The Coalition of Religious Priests, in the spirit of the #Metoo movement, signs an interfaith charter for the fight against sexual violence. This week there was a first conference of its kind that united the most senior religious elements in Israel from four religions, calling for the integration of forces in the fight against violence and sexual abuse. From Rabbi Lowe to the Cady of the Sharia courts, they all signed a treaty calling for the action of the clergy against the disturbing social phenomenon.

“After the #Metoo movement broke out, I noticed that in all this era and the statements in it, we didn’t hear any cleric speaking against the phenomenon, and that voice was very lacking,” says Debbie Gross, director and founder of the Tahal Relief Center, which belongs to the Association for Sexual Injury Victims and the Sector. Religious and ultra-Orthodox throughout the country. “We have been working on the conference for a year and, in my opinion for the first time in the world, we have succeeded in forming a coalition of senior clerics from all religions who met to talk about the phenomenon, and the place of the cleric in the fight against it. The participants even signed a binding treaty. ”

At a conference held earlier this week in Haifa, clerics from the four religions were present – Jewish, Muslim, Druze and Christian. It also joined the Bahá’í religion. The message was clear: Clerics have a responsibility on the issue and are a significant factor in reducing sexual violence in all sectors.

“The clergy signed the religious leader’s commitment to take responsibility,” Gross adds. “They have pledged to protect the community, support the injured and injured, educate respectful interpersonal behavior, treat respectably for any injury and continue reporting and treatment. We explained how they should respond, what boundaries should be marked in order for the victim, for that matter, to feel safe to report and share, and addressed all religions and all types of religious leadership – rabbi, teacher, etc.

“It’s innovative in the sense that nowhere else in the world has a coalition of clerics assembled to fight violence and sexual harassment and provide answers to victims of the phenomenon. The rabbis at the conference said that neither the family nor the community nor the public should be harmed, and that they should cooperate with the criminal procedure – and that was something new. Reporting and non-concealment law: If a community wants to conceal an injury, and the Chief Rabbi talked about the phenomenon, it is a very influential message to the community, and so far no clerics have taken a clear stance on the fight against sexual harassment. That it will happen, which is significant. ”

Not yet internalized

The Chief Rabbi of Israel and the President of the Grand Court Rabbi David Lowe, who attended the conference, believe that the phenomenon of sexual violence crosses sectors and religions, and the importance of the conference in the unification and integration of all the clerics. “Some people have not yet internalized the gravity of the issue, and the inter-religious combination says there will be no religious and religious justification for sexual violence, neither Judaism, nor Christianity nor Islam or Druze community. And that’s a significant line, “explains Rabbi Lau.

“There is a quote in Gemara that uses Jewish terminology, which speaks to the woman being cleansed. And it is important to make clear that this does not mean that a wife belongs to the husband, but rather it is the property rights of the man in the wife and the wife in the man. It’s two-sided. Man and woman have reciprocal rights, but not in their bodies, but only in their finances. And that is a common mistake I came to refute at the conference. ”

One of the highlights of Rabbi Lowe is the issue of the responsibilities of the clergy. “In any such case, law enforcement and welfare agencies should be immediately contacted, so we must guide everyone,” Rabbi Lowe emphasizes. “Hiding hurts everyone – the casualty and the offender. And for them, you have to report and take it out to address the adjusted factors. We train and flood the subject at every opportunity, and I know that there are also rabbinic and clandestine training courses that will detect and report signs of distress in women and report them.

“This silence is violence too. We need to educate the right relationship and a real and right connection, and not to be deterred. I emphasized that this is a cross-sectoral and religious blow and we have a role to educate and convey to the public that sexual, verbal or physical violence is not the way. In any case, the change is already here, and things in the past They may have been treated under the table no longer, they have been published. I do not know if the situation will change in terms of the phenomenon’s data, but yes in terms of awareness and treatment. ”

“The best way to combat this phenomenon is exposure and sharing. I think sharing this is not a shame, on the contrary, the shame is to keep silent because it invites more harm, ”adds Kadi Dr. Iyad Zahalka, Kadi Sharia Court of Appeal and director of the Sharia Court in Israel, who attended the conference.

“The religion of Islam preserves one’s dignity and body, liberty and will, so every injury is indecent and we will fight it and hurt it, which commits sin and transgression. As Cady sitting in the courts, I declared that every act of sexual abuse must be reported and passed on to the authorities to handle legal and other proceedings, and easy and material when there were offenses within the family. We spread the message in sermons, religious lessons, rulings and meetings with the public. We do not bow in any case, and we, the clergy, see ourselves as full partners in the fight against this serious and abusive phenomenon. We do not hide sexual harassment, condemn sexual harassment and encourage the public to denounce and fight them, which is an unequivocal, very important and clear statement made in an interfaith public forum. “

Where is the data?

Perhaps surprisingly, the absence of a numerical data display, which among other things mapped the scope and characteristics of the phenomenon according to religions. One of the known problems among the religious public in all sectors is the phenomenon of shame and concealment, victim blaming, and non-reporting. According to the clergy, the phenomenon is similar in everyone and the conference actually makes a concerted effort to change and say that every religious leader has a role and responsibility and that there is no more room to be ignored and ignored.

Father William Abu-Shakara, the bureau chief of the Greek Catholic Church, represented the Christian community at the conference. “I have been in the position for 20 years, and as a Christian religion, in the company I serve, we have not encountered this situation,” he says. “But believe that if such a case of sexual violence happens, it is imperative to contact the clergy to protect the rights of women and children. It is our duty to prevent concealment and non-reporting and we must train clergy in the community who know how to locate and report on. I learned from other religions at a conference that we all support encouraging the issue and raising it for public awareness. Cooperation between us is essential. The treaty obliges everyone and safeguards women and children, and this has a sweeping consensus. For us, this is real news. ”

“It is our duty to create a sense of security and power in the casualties. Whoever needs to be ostracized is the perpetrator, and we must open our doors to the victims and help them, ”adds Sheikh Moafak Trief, the head of the Druze community in Israel. “Community leaders need to move from defensive to proactive, public and open-minded in every setting – in the family unit, in prayer houses and in educational settings. In the Druze religion, it has been stated a thousand years ago that a woman has equal status to that of man and equality is granted to her in all walks of life, including the right to her body and her wishes. The signing of the treaty is more symbolic, and is an important milestone for a healthier society. ”

Next, clergy in the community will be trained to identify sexual abuse events and escort victims to treatment and reporting. For a year and a half, religious representatives met in the community to map the dilemmas and scenarios facing clergy. For example, issues were raised of a woman who was raped and, if more, she had a halachic abortion, community rape and exclusion from the synagogue, what to do in a situation where there is concern about an abusive teacher and more.

Much of the reform Tamar Gur-Krause is a member of the think-tank and charter drafters. “The central question we are facing is what the role of the cleric is in all this, and why is it important for him to make his voice?”, Explains Gore-Krause. “Obviously, the issue of sexual violence is anti-religious in all religions and at every level. The realization was that clergy have a different influence on people, as they respond as community leaders, who also believe in the spirit and psyche of the people. So there is a sociological level here, a call for openness, encouraging a leisurely approach to them, even at the level of therapeutic continuation and accompaniment.

“In addition, at the conference, we raised the issue of the sense of moral guilt of the victim, so that there are also social elements that the cleric can release and facilitate. For that matter, for example, the rabbi should not be aborted in case of rape, and when clerics say a woman is not guilty, and there is focus It’s only about the offending, there is something spiritual and moral about it, which we believe in. Next, let’s hope that the message reaches as many people as possible. There is a row here where all religions and all streams can meet each other. With me in the same room, and in my opinion this is a big line – no struggles, just a shared mission. ”

Gross concludes: “Sexual violence occurs in the religious sector as in any other sector. On child abuse, we have reached a state of epidemic. Everyone is worried about the spread of the corona virus, but for now tens of thousands of children have been sexually harmed and must be treated as an epidemic. We do see a great development. At the conference we were excited to see that everyone stood together and really were firm and united on the issue. They talked a lot about what the field personnel needed to put in, and each had its nuances depending on their religion. The Chief Rabbi read clearly against the violence and against condemnation and victimization. Sheikh Druze said society should denounce the offending, and this is a milestone for all of us in the fight. Everyone has signed the treaty and it is a very clear voice on the way to change. ”