Child Protection In The Church: An Anglican Case Study (Routledge Studies In Crime And Society)

Child Protection in the Church investigates whether, amidst publicised promises of change from church institutions and the introduction of "safe church" policies and procedures, reform is actually occurring within Christian churches towards child protection; using a case study of the Anglican Diocese of Tasmania, Australia. Through the use of interviews and document analysis, the book provides an insight into the attitudes and practices of 'ordinary clergypersons' towards child sexual abuse and child protection to understand how safe ministry is understood and executed in everyday life in the Church, and to what extent it aligns with policy requirements and criminological best practice. It adopts organisational culture theory, the perspective used to explain how clerical culture enabled and concealed child sexual abuse in the Church, to the present; in order to understand clerical cognition and conduct today is being shaped by some of the same negative cultures. Underlying these cultures are misunderstanding of abuse causation, which are shown here to negatively shape clerical practice and at times compromise policy and procedural requirements. Providing an insight into the lived reality of child protection within churches, and highlighting the ongoing complexities of safe ministry, the book is a useful companion to students, academics and practitioners of child protection and organisational studies, alongside clergy, church leaders and those training for the ministry.

• | Author: Michael A. Guerzoni
• | Publisher: Routledge
• | Publication Date: July 06, 2021
• | Number of Pages: 228 pages
• | Language: English
• | Binding: Hardcover
• | ISBN-10: 0367607824
• | ISBN-13: 9780367607821