Churches That Abuse, first published in 1992, is a best-selling Christian apologetic book written by sociologist Ronald M. Enroth. The book documents cases of churches and other organizations said to be spiritually abusive and the effects these groups have had on their members. The author says that "spiritual abuse can take place in the context of doctrinally sound, Bible-preaching, fundamentalist, conservative Christianity".[1] Enroth outlines the backgrounds of the leaders of these groups and explains how the groups evolved to the point of becoming spiritually abusive.
 | |
| Author | Ronald Enroth |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Subject | Spiritual abuse |
| Genre | Christianity |
| Publisher | Zondervan |
Publication date | 1992 |
| Publication place | United States |
| Pages | 231 |
| ISBN | 978-0-310-53292-7 |
| OCLC | 24502109 |
| Followed by | Recovering from Churches That Abuse |
Reception
editThe book has been praised by Margaret Thaler Singer,[1] Paul R. Martin,[2] and Maxine Pinson.[3] Ruth Tucker, countercultist and former professor at Calvin Theological Seminary, objected to the research methods used by Enroth.[4] Jerome G. Blankinship, in The Christian Century, argued that the book would have benefited from an index and a more academic approach to the subject, but overall still approves of the work.[5] In Christianity Today, Robert W. Patterson believes the book is an expose for evangelical Christian groups that spiritually abuse its adherents, but he criticizes Enroth for not asking the "hard, theological question: Are these abusive churches really Christian?"[6]
References
edit- ^ a b Singer, Margaret Thaler (1993). "Book Review - Churches That Abuse". ICSA. Retrieved 2022-08-15.
- ^ Halverson, Dean C.; Martin, Paul R. (Summer 1992). "Book Reviews". Christian Research Institute Journal. Archived from the original on 2000-05-16. Retrieved 2022-08-15.
- ^ Pinson, Maxine (1992). "Churches That Abuse". ISCA. Archived from the original on 2007-02-22. Retrieved 2022-08-15.
- ^ Tucker, Ruth (1994). "Cornerstone Magazine". Cornerstone. Archived from the original on 2007-03-20. Retrieved 2022-08-15.
- ^ Blankinship, Jerome G. (7 October 1992). "Churches That Abuse by Ronald M. Enroth". The Christian Century. 109 (28): 876.
- ^ Patterson, Robert W. (17 August 1992). "Churches That Abuse by Ronald M. Enroth". Christianity Today. 36 (9): 56–7.
External links
edit- Churches that Abuse available in PDF format and in text/html
- Recovering from Churches that Abuse available in PDF format and in text/html
- "How to Spot an Abusive Church" Article written by Ronald Enroth for Group Magazine that summarizes the book