I don't rub my hands in glee to discover another aspect of the abuse. Rather, I feel like Jewel the Unicorn in The Last Battle. After being informed that the royal castle, Cair Paravel, has been infiltrated by enemies, he says, “So. Narnia is no more.”

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The work of trying to move the process forward – the emails, the conversations, the reviewing of minutes, the scheduling of conversations, the editing of documents – is heavy and exhausting. How can we do this without the witness and support of church leaders and MCC stakeholders who can help us by insisting that there is a broader systemic problem and ensuring that the burden of demonstrating this does not rest primarily on our weary shoulders?

Read Anicka’s personal reflections about three categories of conversation that are part of MAST advocacy, and how each of these affects her differently.

MAST continues to hear from survivors on a regular basis. We are now aware of 60 cases of “bad endings” with MCC. One theme that often emerges is the extreme pain that many feel due to isolation from their communities in the aftermath of their bad ending with MCC.

…the unquestioned loyalty to MCC in many congregations adds to a sense of shame and isolation…

One survivor shared with MAST that they had not even written about the events in their journal, even years after being fired and pressured into signing an NDA as a condition for receiving a severance package. This person says, “I hid because I was ashamed. I sold my house, left the area. I couldn’t go to church in case ___ (MCC leader) showed up. No one ever reached out to see if I was OK.”

Who hurt Lena? A parable about harm by institutions.