Battered Into Submission: The Tragedy of Wife Abuse in the Christian Home

by James Alsdurf, Phyllis Alsdurf

Each year three to four million women are severely assaulted by their husbands, ex-husbands or boyfriends. Battery is the single major cause of injury to women. And Christians are not exempt. Women are being choked, spat upon, hit, pushed, bitten, dragged by the hair and kicked -- by Christian husbands. Unfortunately, the church has all too often ignored this uncomfortable subject. Citing their finding from extensive research and summarizing eight years of interviews with victims, abusers, and pastors, James and Phyllis Alsdurf provide a comprehensive treatment of this troubling topic. They show the psychological, spiritual and personal impact of wife abuse and call the church to reexamine its role in addressing the issue.

168 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1989

Reviews

[Landon · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book on the problem of wife abuse in the Christian home and how some Christian men apparently feel it is their right to do whatever they want to their wives. The book was informative and well-written. Being a short overview, I think this book is a great introduction to wife abuse in a Christian context.

[James Duran · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is spiteful, vindictive nonsense. Written by a pair of delusional left wing imbeciles. There are better toilet rolls on the market, but it would still be the best use you will find for this complete pigswill.

[Fed · Rating 4 out of 5]

If this is a topic sensitive to you be prepared to cry.

The statistics are a bit dated, but the message is clear; this problem still happens today and in places where someone would never expect.

I was horrified to see the horrible picture the statistics in this book paint about about spousal abuse. This evil trend is ubiquitous. Being a Christian, and knowing that Christ hates this hateful action, I could have never imagined that this would be a problem in Christian homes. This reiterates to me that as in every social/religious/political landscape, there are people who walk the walk, and people who only talk the talk.

This is a good book for counselors and pastors. Too often, as this book explains, the advice that is given to the abused women contributes to more abuse and more perpetuating of spousal abuse.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book for a research paper. Although it is a bit dated (publish year is 1989), I believe it demonstrates the problem of abuse/submission issues justified by Christianity in the home quite well.

[Basia Rose]

I'm interested in this because it was recommended in an article about Christian Domestic Discipline and abuse.

[Tamara · Rating 5 out of 5]

An old but important study - our Muslim community could benefit greatly from much of this research and esp some of the conclusions and recommendations.