Carol, a personal friend of mine, shared her story of what happened after she was baptized into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at the age of 8. Following her baptism, “she refused to stand up in front of the congregation and bear her testimony – to make a declaration about how she knew that God, the Heavenly Father, loved her. Her father punished her by raping her.”
In an era of #MeToo, when more and more people — women and men alike — are going forward with their own tales of abuse, many churches are becoming more proactive in their efforts to prevent abuse within their ranks.