Survivor Prayers: Talking with God about Childhood Sexual Abuse [Paperback]

Catherine J. Foote (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 1994

Child sexual abuse wounds its victims deeply. Physical wounds can be seen; invisible wounds and scars touch the soul. Catherine Foote offers this book to survivors of abuse, especially survivors of childhood sexual abuse, offering them a way of exploring the impact that abuse has had on their relationship with God.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

This book contains brief, moving testimony of the author's own recovery from sexual abuse and her ever-continuing journey toward healing, intimacy, and God. The heart of the book is a series of prayer-poems in which Foote, who is also a minister to adolescents and their families, shares with God and the reader her pain, her spiritual struggles, her difficulties with self-image and with God-image, and her learning to feel and want healing not only for herself but also for a child molester. Her book is highly recommended for victims, their families and friends, and those who counsel them--as well as abusers trying to reform.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Catherine J. Foote is a Minister at University Congregational United Church of Christ in Seattle, Washington. She is the founder of Brake the Cycle, National Ride to Stop Child Sexual Abuse, and has ridden her bicycle across the country five times to raise funds for child abuse prevention and recovery programs.

Product Details

• Paperback: 104 pages
• Publisher: Westminster John Knox Press; 1st edition (March 1, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0664254357
• ISBN-13: 978-0664254353
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.1 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #390,757 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #74 in Books > Religion & Spirituality > Spirituality > Prayerbooks

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A real gem!, March 15, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Survivor Prayers: Talking with God about Childhood Sexual Abuse (Paperback)

This book has been an extremely important book to me in my healing journey. I found it at a time when I couldn't even find the words to talk to God, and as I opened the book and read a prayer, it was as if the thoughts were coming directly from my own heart. The narrative reflections on the healing process is insigthful. The variety of prayers from different persons and for differing occasions is very helpful. I highly recommend this book.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A gift for the wounded and searching spirit, November 10, 1998

By 

[e-mail] (Dover Delaware) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Survivor Prayers: Talking with God about Childhood Sexual Abuse (Paperback)

This book is a grace-filled gift for surviors who are seeking to connect with God. Both the reflections and the prayers validate the wound yet free the imagination to soar to the source of healing and wholeness. I highly recommend this book!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A treasure for victims/survivors, December 16, 2007

By 

Soul Reader "Pneuma" (Midwestern USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Survivor Prayers: Talking with God about Childhood Sexual Abuse (Paperback)

This book is indeed a treasure for victims/survivors. In the narrative portions, the author speaks succinctly and honestly about the effects of sexual abuse on the formation of one's faith and relationship with God. Catherine Foote is an ordained minister, and she speaks as one within the Christian tradition critiquing that tradition. Her critical voice is tempered with an obvious love for the church and a desire to integrate religion and spirtuality for the abused and those who have compassion for the abused.

Each prayer was a new "ah ha" moment for me. Rev. Foote's prayers speak to the depths of pain, sorrow, grief, betrayal, hope, resurrection, and grace experienced by victims/survivors of sexual abuse. Her prayer regarding forgiveness is worth more than the price of the book.

This book is a must-read for victims/survivors, clergy, compassionate people of faith, and espeially for victims/survivors who have considerd leaving or who have left the church fearing their safety.