4
The War Cry | SEPTEMBER 2014
E
very 9 seconds in the U.S. a woman is assaulted or
beaten. Domestic violence is the leading cause of injury
to women--more than car accidents, muggings and rapes
combined.
Studies suggest that up to 6 million children witness some
form of domestic violence annually.
Domestic violence and abuse can happen to anyone.
Domestic violence and abuse are used for one purpose and
one purpose only: to gain and maintain total control over someone. Domestic
abuse often escalates from threats and verbal abuse to violence.
There are many signs of an abusive relationship. The most telling sign is fear of
your partner. If you feel like you have to walk on eggshells around your partner--
constantly watching what you say and do in order to avoid a blow�up--chances
are your relationship is unhealthy and abusive.
What does the Bible have to say about domestic violence in the home? Jesus
brings us back to the biblical pattern God laid down in Genesis: "This explains why
a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united
into one" (Matthew 19:4. Genesis 2:24). Peter said "husbands must give honor to
your wives. Treat your wife with understanding as you live together" (1 Peter 3:7).
Paul says in Ephesians: "In the same way husbands ought to love their wives as
they love their own bodies" (5:28). Consideration, respect and love should be what
govern relationships in the home, not violence and domination. This is not merely
expected of Christian couples but all couples. God never intended anyone to live in
a hostile environment, in fear for their lives. God has called us to peace within
marital relationships.
Violence in the home, be it overt or covert, is totally unacceptable to God for all
people.
MESSAGE FROM THE NATIONAL COMMANDER
LETTER FROM THE EDITOR
W
ILLIAM
B
OOTH
FOUNDER
A
NDR�
C
OX
GENERAL
D
AVID
J
EFFREY
NATIONAL COMMANDER
The Salvation Army Territorial Commanders
P
AUL
R. S
EILER
Central Territorial Commander
B
ARRY
S
WANSON
Eastern Territorial Commander
D
ONALD
B
ELL
Southern Territorial Commander
J
AMES
M. K
NAGGS
Western Territorial Commander
The Salvation Army National Publications Department
Allen Satterlee
Editor�in�Chief
Frank Duracher
Assistant Editor-in-Chief
Jeffrey McDonald
Editorial Director
Roger O. Selvage Jr. Art Director
Gloria A. Hull
Design & Production Editor
Ashley H. Clarke
Graphic Designer
Andrea K. Ricker
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Publications Marketing Manager
Charles Piercey
Electronic Communications Co ordinator
Judith L. Brown
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Elizabeth Duracher Publications Outreach Officer
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Administrative Specialist
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The Salvation Army, an international
movement, is an evangelical part of
the universal Christian church.
Its message is based on the Bible.
Its ministry is motivated by the love of God.
Its mission is to preach the gospel of
Jesus Christ and to meet human needs
in His name without discrimination.
National Publication of
T H E S A L V A T I O N A R M Y
SEPTEMBER 2O14
Volume 134 | Number 10
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�2014 The Salvation Army
Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken
from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright �1996,
2004, 2007, 2013 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by
permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream,
Illinois 60188, USA. All rights reserved.
W
hen Dorothy was trying to get back to Kansas from Oz,
she clicked the heels of her red shoes and repeated,
"There's no place like home. There's no place like home." Home
represented safety and security, order in a loving place. Sadly,
for too many people home is a far cry from that. It is a place
of unpredictable tempers that explode over little or nothing,
where verbal assaults too often end with fi sts and kicks and
choking.
Besides the obvious tragedy of home being more dangerous for many than the
front lines of battle is the sad thruth that most couples never thought this would
be part of their marriage. Some people are more apt to abuse or be abused
because they saw it modeled in their homes growing up. But coming from a home
where abuse has occurred is no excuse for it being passed on to a new generation.
People are capable of choice and like any temptation, the temptation to strike
someone can be overcome by God's help. Although we are infl uenced by our
parents for good or ill, we are not locked into their behaviors. We are totally
responsible for what happens at our hands or what we allow others to do to us.
If you are an abuser, there are resources to help. If you are suffering from abuse,
there are resources to help. It is never God's will for one human to infl ict abuse on
another. He designed marriage to be a loving and nurturing relationship.