Clergy Sexual Abuse: Church of Hate
by Frances Park ( hildegardd@juno.com ), Norwich, CT
Copyright © 1995.  All rights reserved. This image may not be reproduced in any form without permission.

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The background blocks of this quilt are constructed of Jacob's Ladder and Two by Two, from the Bible.  The broken apart church has become a furnace that fuels the wrath of the minister.  His charisma is represented by his stole.  It contains a piece of mylar: shiny to look at and reflective of the onlooker's image of self.

A trinity of perpetuating clergy supporters close their eyes to all that surrounds them.  The female in the Trinity has the best vantage from which to witness all aspects of the scenario.  Instead, she chooses to hold onto the minister's tyranny.

All perpetuators have turned away from the woman who has been the primary target of the abuse.  Although she has escaped the minister and the church, she remains shackled to the minister's charisma.  Her dress is of the blue color associated with the Virgin Mary.  She has no mouth because she has been silenced by the church.

Also included in the quilting is the track of the underground railroad.  The only source of light in this quilt emanates from the underground.  There, the survivor is a woman of color, who holds the key to solutions to this problem of domination, victimization, and oppression.  The halo that surrounds her is off center and a bit crooked because, after all, no one is entirely perfect.