What does the lord require of us? Child sexual abuse in the churches

This article reviews the evidence on the extent of child sexual abuse in church communities, and the reasons why churches are so vulnerable to this form of crime. There are particular factors in church life which give rise to the propensity for abuse and which provide the opportunity for abuse. The article goes on to evaluate the different models for responding to victims of child abuse, using as examples the protocols and procedures of churches in Australia. The three models are the disciplinary procedure model, the mediation model and the restoration model. All of them begin from a premise of wanting to offer a response to victims, but only the restoration model is both victim-focused and fulfils the Church's responsibility for the protection of those in its congregations