Reformed Theology - in the Wake of Sexual Assault

 

I dreaded attending my Genesis-1 Samuel Scriptures class last fall - not because I disliked my professor, my classmates, or the work – rather, because it felt like we discussed a different sexual assault found in Scripture every class. The names and stories of these women - Dinah, Hagar, Tamar, the unnamed concubine of Judges, Jephthah’s daughter - are vivid, carnal, and heartbreaking. It had only been a few mere months since the occurrence my own sexual assault, and these class discussions were very difficult to sit through and participate in. As our professor posed questions regarding these women’s suffering and God’s role in ordaining or allowing evil, I would feel my heart beating faster, the blood draining from my face, and tears welling up; usually, I longed to crawl under my seat and disappear for the rest of the class.

 

Seminary classes certainly consist of the expected curriculum, providing students with the challenges of exegeting difficult passages in scripture, and pouring over the nuances of complex philosophical and theological doctrines. Yes, it can be a complicated thing, to attend seminary - but it is even more complicated to be a victim of rape while you attend. It is one matter to grapple cognitively with the problem of theodicy in class, for example, but when a sexual assault happens to you, your mind, body, and soul are forced to wrestle and embody these questions inside to the very depths of your core being. You begin to ask the question “Why does God allow evil?” outside of your classroom and in your bed, shaking and whimpering from a nightmare. The question, “Does God ordain and cause bad things like my rape to happen?” seems a lot more pertinent and pressing to answer while sobbing on the couch, curled in the fetal position, triggered with a PTSD episode. You begin to wonder, “Does God really protect those in his flock?” as you double-check to ensure your doors are locked and dead-bolted every night before bed. 

 

In the aftermath of my sexual assault, I found great comfort within the doctrines of my Reformed faith and theology. To some, Reformed theology has a notorious reputation regarding how its doctrines answer some of the most difficult questions regarding the nature of suffering and evil. Below, I hope to briefly explain how Reformed theology has served as a great consolation to me as I process and heal from such a traumatic and evil event in my life. 

 

1.     God’s Providence Rules Over All – So does God ordain evil? Did He cause my rape to happen? 

 

Questions regarding the problem of evil are the eternal questions that even the most erudite of humankind’s most accomplished philosophers and theologians have struggled to answer. One will find these themes featured prominently throughout the books of Job and Ecclesiastes in Scripture, or perhaps in the miles of paper that have surely been scribbled on to discourse upon theodicy. I will not attempt to detail the nuances of the many arguments regarding how to best answer these questions, rather, I aim to simply explain how Reformed doctrine has informed my own understanding of these questions.

 

It is true that the Reformed affirm that God is not the author of sin - the sinful act of assault itself lies completely in the freedom of the human will and action - but they also affirm that God does determine and ordain all things that come to pass. The Reformed uphold this highly complex and seeming paradox of God via the witness of Scripture; for example, the book of Isaiah contains the declaration, “I bring prosperity and create disaster; I, the LORD, do all these things.” (Is. 45:7). The topic of providence as addressed within the Heidelberg Catechism may also be particularly enlightening: 

 

Q. What do you understand by the providence of God?

A.  God's providence is

his almighty and ever present power,

whereby, as with his hand, he still upholds

heaven and earth and all creatures,

and so governs them that

leaf and blade,

rain and drought,

fruitful and barren years,

food and drink,

health and sickness,

riches and poverty,

indeed, all things,

come to us not by chance 

but by his fatherly hand. 

 

Scripture is certainly not silent on the topic of suffering, and acknowledges it quite candidly and often (Job 3, 6, 7, 9, 14, Pss. 22, 39, 69, 73, Lamentations, Ecclesiastes, Matt. 6:34, Rom. 7:24, 1 Cor. 15:19, etc.) As the Psalmist cries, in moving laments, appealing to (or questioning) the sovereignty of God, one sees that ultimately, our trust in God’s Divine Providence over all things ought to be our source of our hope and comfort in all of life’s circumstances, including our suffering (Pss. 23, 33, 38, 127:1-2, 146:2, etc.). 

 

“How cruel” one might think. “How is any of this comforting in the slightest? It sounds like your God is evil, if he allows or causes you to suffer.” 

 

I am reminded that similar accusations were mockingly thrust upon Christ Himself as He suffered so terribly upon the Cross: Those below derided Him, “He trusted in God, so let God rescue him now, if He delights in him!” (Matt. 27:43). 

 

Bavinck writes that “Scripture in its totality is the book of God’s providence.” Thus, “providence” to the Reformed is not just of some cold, abstract, re-worked theological discourse upon the ancient concepts of “destiny” or “fate,” rather, it is an acknowledgement of God’s active work throughout the world as revealed in His Word. In Scripture, God providentially creates, makes alive, renews, observes, saves, preserves, leads, teaches, rules, upholds, cares, and works. Contrasting other religions and theologies, such as Deism, this Reformed understanding of God’s providence relates Himself and the fulfillment of His promises to his Creation in a completely direct manner. In other words, God is an active agent in the world, not a mere distant figure watching over everything “in the sky,” hyperbolically speaking. We see in Scripture that God is immensely present among His people, not just in the good, but in all things, including in suffering and sorrow. As one of my favorite Baptist hymns sings, “My Lord Is near me all the time.” 

 

Furthermore, If God works and governs all things according to his will (Eph. 1:11), then His absolute sovereignty and power upholds everything in the world. There is some comfort in knowing that if my God is powerful enough to keep the entire world spinning upon its axis, he is surely powerful enough to help me in my own troubles. Indeed, Scripture demonstrates that just as God upholds the entire world as such as its Creator and King of Kings, God also cares for his Creation as a loving Father. God providentially cares for and regards even the smallest of His creatures, such as the sparrow and the lilies of the field (Matt 6:26-28), and knows the count of the hairs on our heads (Matt. 10:30). Strikingly, Scripture also affirms that God works human evil into good (Gen. 50:20), and all things will ultimately work together for good (Rom. 8:28). Thus, when “bad” things happen, such my assault, I am comforted knowing there is a “bigger purpose” to all of it – I did not face merely an act of mindless, pointless evil. It is a great hope to me that my own suffering and story is not just yet another sad event that occurred on earth – rather, it matters – I trust that God will transform these things, even if slowly, into something good. I know that God has the ability to turn my darkness into a great light. Indeed, Scripture often speaks of how our sufferings will also bring us closer to God, who loves us despite our suffering (Pss. 73); suffering provides opportunities for our testing, reinforcing, and witnessing to God’s truth. Enduring the pain that comes in this life comes with the promise of eternal rewards. Following in the example of our abused, suffering savior, we see that suffering paints the road to calvary, where the cross points to a crown, and, ultimately, to the Glory of God. 

 

Ultimately, I do not think any one person or philosophy is able to completely solve the problem and mystery of evil, but resting in the Reformed doctrine of providence has allowed me to trust that there is a bigger plan beyond my own understanding, that my suffering is not meaningless, and that I am not alone. I have been able to rest in the comfort that God is not only beside me in my pain, but is actively protecting me, providing for me, and covering me in his Grace, as He rules over the entire world in like manner. I simply find myself unable to do anything more than echo the words of Job: "The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away. Blessed be the name of the LORD." (Job 1:21).

 

 

2.     Total Depravity is real – and I think that explains a lot! 

 

Once one has experienced great suffering at the hands of a cruel, callous person, the Reformed doctrine of the depravity of humankind seems quite obvious and self-explanatory. Indeed, it is a relief in some ways to simply acknowledge that the hearts of all people are inclined to do evil, as an overly optimistic and hopeful view of the state of the world can lead to despair and confusion when people you thought you could trust cause very hurtful things to happen to you or others. I found that it was simply better for me fall into the infinite goodness and lovingness of the Lord, instead of looking outwardly to the world in order to find any assurance of goodness. Indeed, not only do I not seek to find goodness outwardly in the world or in other people, but I do not have to worry about finding it inwardly in myself, either. Experiencing violence at the hands of another person has certainly made me doubt my own virtues, and has caused me to reflect upon my own sin. True, though we are not all rapists, we are all guilty of erring against our neighbors and sinning against another person in ways that cause them hurt. The Reformed understand, therefore, that not one of us is good - we all are in deep need of God’s forgiveness and grace. God’s grace, revealed in the only sinless person to exist, Jesus Christ, provides me with an assurance of goodness found nowhere else and in no other person. I can trust that Christ will never fail me, where others do. 

 

3.     God cares deeply for Justice.

 

The law of Moses and witness of Scripture teach that earthly justice may be pursued inside and outside of human courts (Ex. 22, Deut. 1:16-17; 16:20, etc.). However, the statistics regarding the low conviction rate for sexual assault in the United States are quite grim. Even if one bravely reports a sexual assault case to the police, the police must decide whether or not to further investigate the case; if they do, they will take the case to the DA, who will then make another decision on whether or not the case has sufficient evidence to continue to a trial or to make a plea deal. Thus, in the criminal justice system today, there is very little assurance and hope that victims of sexual crimes will ever see a conviction or another form of legal justice, even if they report their attacker.

 

Reformed doctrine is sometimes critiqued for an over-emphasis on God’s wrathful “justice,” with blame resting upon the doctrines of God’s justice developed by lawyer-turned-systematic-theologian, John Calvin. However, what a relief it is as a victim of sexual assault - someone to whom attaining earthly justice seems such a futile and hopeless venture - that my God is a God of justice and righteousness in his core attributes. Yes, the Reformed affirm that sexual ethics are grounded in God’s own nature, and God knows those who are guilty of trespassing His law. Scripture demonstrates over and over that God cares deeply about upholding the case of the afflicted and the oppressed, of attaining justice for the widow and the orphan. No one hates sin more than God, and He promises that He will allow no sin to go unpunished (Heb. 9:21); instead, He will repay everyone according to their deeds (Job 34:11). Vengeance is the Lord’s – they are his own cause (Deut. 32:35). I find if one attempts to deemphasize these attributes of God’s nature and only view Him as a gentle, loving father – perhaps as the Socinians did –  God is wrongfully stripped of His core character as the ultimate judge, and those who suffer at the hands of law-breakers and oppressors are quite literally robbed of God’s own Divine promises of due justice. As good and evil are objectively rooted in the will of God alone, I am able to trust that justice will be executed on my behalf through God’s own divine punishment. God will not allow the wicked to prosper eternally; their rule will one day come to an end, and only the righteous will prevail and receive their eternal reward. 

 

In a similar manner, the Reformed acknowledge that Jesus suffered and died to satisfy the proper justice; by Christ’s own suffering, sinners were not repaid according to our own sins, but Christ satisfied and preserved the justice of God. Thus, through the incarnation, life, death, and resurrection of Christ Jesus, we see all God’s attributes working together: His grace, mercy, love, righteousness, holiness, and power uphold His justice perfectly. Though I hope and pray that my assaulter receives the due justice he deserves, legally and temporally, more importantly, I find consolation in knowing that he may also repent and find restoration. In this world, where there is so much evil, there remains an ironic comfort in recognizing that God has the power to pardon even the most heinous of sins through the satisfactory work of Christ. This truth is expressed by Fanny Crosby in her well-known hymn “To God be the Glory”: “Even the vilest offender who truly believes, that moment from Jesus a pardon receives.” I believe that an acknowledgement and understanding of the workings of God’s justice, both spiritually and materially, provide an incredible opportunity for me to pray for real earthly justice and retribution to be done on my behalf, without diminishing the almost unfathomable offering of spiritual forgiveness for even my worst enemy. What hope of restoration for all of us, until the day of the consummation - where there will be no more evil, tears, or suffering. I will hold on until that day, resting in these truths revealed in Scripture.

 

Soli Deo Gloria,

 

Leah