Part one of this two-part interview explores finding a trustworthy spiritual leader.
Oftentimes, a hard-rock overt/covert problem among a wide range of religious organizations, institutions, schools, and entities, is that the structure is built on top of dysfunctional systems that allow religious abuse to continue.
Recently, I interviewed Alisha Powell, PhD, LCSW, LICSW, professor, therapist, couples counselor and owner of Amethyst Counseling and Consulting regarding this topic.
Why did you become a religious trauma therapist?
Powell: …Growing up, my family made the decision to move away from some of our other friends and family to live in a rural area of Tennessee working for a ministry and so, through that experience, I was not only in an environment that felt really closed off, but also had a lot of religious expectations as well as guidelines and rules about what you could do and what you couldn’t do as far as stress and diet.
That experience is one of the things that led me to want to explore more about religious trauma. I went on to college, and after that chapter I went on to major in social work, and that really piqued my interest not only in community but also the role that religion plays within psychology and the human psyche. And that really was what drew me to mental health and wanting to really support people who were coming from either religiously abusive organizations, or cults, or just environments that had a lot of church hurt because they were hurt by a church leader, or they experienced some type of trauma due to some type of spiritual abuse or environment.
So, what are clear warning signs that could help an individual identify the difference between an abusive leader and one that is truly loving and truly humble or safe?
Powell: Well, you know, I think it’s sometimes hard to tell. And I think you made a great point that these leaders are often charismatic. So, they may, a lot of times present themselves as really positive people that are doing things for the community, or that are doing things for the group. These are people who rarely show up and show their true colors. So honestly, I think it’s a matter of time.
“…be willing to … ask the leader, ‘what are your intentions?'”
Really take some time before joining a group. Really ask questions, be willing to, you know, give it time, and also ask the leader, ‘what are your intentions?’ Also, look at some of their fruits.
What are the people around them saying? Is there something that’s been shrouded by secrecy? Are they always talking about themselves and their accomplishments, what is their greater goal, and what is the good that they’re giving to the community?
Are they telling you to leave your family and friends? Are they telling you that the world is bad and that you need to listen to them? Are they presenting themselves as the only way to eternal life?
It’s really what they’re saying because if their message is centered on them, if it’s centered on ‘I have the truth and no one has the truth but me,’ that is one of the biggest red flags that someone can show you. They believe that they’ve arrived, or they’ve found some type of spiritual enlightenment that nobody else has, those beliefs can be really dangerous.
It really leads to more isolation, but it also leads to a level of groupthink that really goes in the direction of religious trauma, and that’s when a lot of abuse happens because one person is charismatic, they have a lot of power and they have lot of influence, and people in the group believe that this person is their pathway to salvation, their pathway to God, and they see this person as a messenger.
“And when people in the congregation or group see this person in that light, they can do no wrong.”
And when people in the congregation or group see this person in that light, they can do no wrong. So there’s no correcting them. There’s no bringing anything to their attention because they’re told that speaking against this leader or against this faith leader is against God.
Whenever somebody puts themselves (as) the God of their message, or the message is very centered on themselves, that is a very, very glaring red flag to be aware of.
Look for part two of this interview in June. Learn more about Alisha Powell at www.amethystcounselingandconsulting.com. Her practice currently covers Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Texas and Virginia.
Mira Cassidy is a religious abuse recovery coach, actress and writer. Contact her at mira@miracassidy.com or visit her new informational website, Sisters Living with Religious Trauma® Support Media LLC, at slrtsupport.com.
