About Jocelyn Zichterman - Freedom From Abuse Network

If you would have told me ten years ago that I would eventually spend my days addressing the issues surrounding the trauma of abuse I would have said, "No way!" This was not what I would have called a fulfilling and satisfying life vision. To me, abuse has been a topic on my mind, but not on my lips and I wasn't convinced I wanted to spend the rest of my life talking about it. However, life has a way of throwing us a curve ball and sometimes we have choose to do what we believe is the right thing to do.

Emotional, psychological, physical and sexual abuse has all been a part of and within our communities for centuries. Each generation has been called to new and unpredicted dilemmas. Abusers have used physical violence, sex, religion, the Bible, control, doctrine, authority, isolation, finances and humiliation for decades to manipulate their victims. Sometimes these abusers are calculated deceivers, while at other times the abusers are a product of their own self-delusion. This website was designed to draw attention to these issues.

My hope is that you will walk away from this site overwhelmed, angry, horrified and nauseated, because I understand that sometimes that's what it takes for people to become so passionate about evil that they actually move on that passion and do whatever it takes to eradicate it altogether. For over a decade the news media has highlighted the atrocities taking place within the walls of our communities and our churches. They have touted one pedophile after another in front of our faces. Cults and high control religious sects are continuing to be exposed. All the while the churches within these sects remain mysteriously quiet about the whole ordeal. Statements of silence are used to hush the agony of the abused and money is the means to appease the pain. This is astounding and simply not acceptable. Only a handful of organizations have surfaced who are delving into the deep waters of these issues and addressing the topic to help those who have suffered. We continue to attend our churches and talk amongst one another in hushed tones as if it's not to be spoken of publicly, while those outside the church are shaking their heads in disbelief and swearing off the church altogether. I believe the God of heaven is angry, nauseated and sick of the cover-ups and the continued abuse.

I have no doubt if Jesus walked on the earth today that this would be one of the first topics on his lips. I don't think he'd turn his head or hold back the rage. I dont think he'd think twice about the "reputation" of the church but instead, He would stand up for those who cannot stand up for themselves. He would have holy-rage towards the abuse done in His name. Where is our righteous anger? We no longer murder people for doctrinal differences or cut out the tongues of those we deem heretics, but we sit back in silence as countless men, women, and children's souls are destroyed.

Very few victims of abuse are willing to talk about the pain publicly and the few who do are looked upon as trouble-makers or taking revenge. They get verbally attacked and slandered. We don't want to address the issue for fear of reprisal from those outside our walls. But in reality, we're only refusing to see what others already know. Blame the victim for not "pulling themselves up by the bootstraps" is our mantra, all in a sick attempt to avoid accountability.

THIS is the dilemma of our day. THIS is the catastrophe of the church. THIS is the lowest level of hypocrisy. And THIS IS THE TIME for us to speak up and do whatever it takes to protect the vulnerable and abused in all arenas of life. If the church has done something wrong, we should acknowledge our wrong-doing, face it head on, deal with the abusers and our cover-ups and do whatever we need to do to learn how to deal with these issues more affectively. It doesn't help us to close our eyes, talk about it in whispered tones, and hope no one from the "outside" will discover we have issues. Because ultimately, we are only kidding ourselves and you can only fool people for so long before it all crumbles anyway. I will spend the rest of my life fighting for the men, women and children that this affects.

This dialogue must begin among us. We cannot turn away from it any longer. Our communities and churches were never intended to be a haven for pedophiles and abusers of all kinds and the only way to end this conflict is by addressing it fully and succinctly. It is time for us to come together to change our own horrendous reputation. For those who want this to change, but don't know where to begin, I beg you to consider an honest attempt at dialogue about these issues within your own community and church.

As for myself, I understand the difficulty of coming forward. It took nearly 30 years to speak of my abuse. And to those of you reading this who have been abused and have come forward, I applaud you. You are full of courage and the only people who refuse to see that are those who allow the abuse and have no desire to do anything about it. As time goes on, I will continue to attend every conference I can that addresses the issue and I will speak out at every possible point and put every effort into helping make the changes that need to be made. I believe if we all come together, we can see real changes, changes that last a lifetime and beyond.