ISSN: 2710-4028 DOI: https://doi.org/10.54208/0003 5
Religious institutions and religious ideologies and
doctrines incorporate a range of specific features that
shape the grooming process in several unique ways.
Religion is, fundamentally, a foundation for human
interaction and association: it fosters the establishment
of communities that allow for the “expression of shared
meanings” (McGuire, 2002, p. 25). Hence, situated
within the religious group, individuals interpret their
life experiences by drawing on the dominant meaning-
making systems that the religion provides (Hood Jr,
1998 McGuire, 2002). Religious institutions are adept
at maintaining their belief systems as the only objective
truths, and they normalize their beliefs and practices
inter-generationally via religious socialization.
This process of legitimation whereby religions posit
their unique relationship to the supernatural realm
(Berger, 1967/2011, p. 10) is vital because it allows
religions to confer a high level of status and capital
to their worldviews. Critically, when attempting to
understand the world, events that occur in it, as well as
their own experiences, religious adherents are likely to
turn to this worldview above others.12 Drawing on Peter
Berger, McGuire states, “The provision of meaning
is particularly important for an understanding of
religion because of the ways that meaning links the
individual with the larger social group. Meaning is
not inherent in a situation but bestowed” (McGuire,
2008, p. 27 [emphasis in the original]). The bestowal
of religious meaning is critical to our discussion.
Children especially may not have the wherewithal to
access alternative meaning systems when confronted
with abusive behaviors that offenders bestow with
religious significance. And, as Malcolm Hamilton
notes, “religion does not simply legitimate and make
sense of the social order. It makes sense of experiences
which might otherwise be disruptive and disordering”
(Hamilton, 1995, p. 162). That is to say, religions offer
theodicies to their adherents—explanations for why
terrible things can happen to individuals, despite the
existence of God.
3.2 Religious Power, Authority, and Patriarchy
Because “religious groups and institutions can be
understood as hierarchies of unequal power” (Shupe,
12 Commitment levels may vary a great deal among religious
adherents, especially within larger denominations and world religions.
Children often are influenced by their parents’ or other caregivers’ levels of
commitment, although other factors may influence.
2007, p. 6 [italics in the original]), congregants and
especially children have little to no access to religious
power. Furthermore, those who occupy a lower status
typically are taught to credit the institution as being
entirely compassionate, caring, reliable, and altruistic
religious leaders are supported as trusted and as
possessing great spiritual acumen and knowledge.
These dynamics allow religious leaders and authority
figures to use their “moral persuasion” within a unique
set of “special ‘opportunity structures’ for potential
exploitation, abuse and mismanagement” (Shupe,
2007, p. 6).
Religious power, authority, patriarchy, and opportunity
coalesce to foster conditions that some individuals
exploit to groom and sexually abuse children. In their
brief discussion of religious grooming, Tishelman and
Fontes (2017) found that sexual offenders used “the
authority of the religious institution to groom the child
and justify CSA [child sexual abuse]” (Tishelman &
Fontes, 2017, p. 123). They reported that in one case,
the offender referred to God’s authority, stating that
God had “ordained me to do this.” They found that
offenders who used appeals to religious authority made
the child more “compliant” to grooming. Moreover,
in some cases, abusers used religious narratives to
legitimate the grooming and abuse as part of the child’s
religious “education.” For example, this focus was
evident in a family where the adoptive father, a devout
Mormon, wanted to keep the “teaching and training at
home” (Tishelman &Fontes, 2017, p. 123). By drawing
on the religious meaning system and the importance
of religious “teachings,” offenders such as this one can
present grooming behaviors to children as uniquely
legitimate religious “lessons.”
In some cases, the grooming process even rests
upon the pretext of freeing the child from spiritual
malaise. In Nigeria, for example, some Pentecostal
pastors frequently groom children and their families
on the premise that they will help to free children
from demonic possession. The pastors then perform
‘exorcisms’ on them—a euphemism for the subsequent
sexual assaults. The pastors realize the absolute trust
that the community has in them and therefore are able
to effectively groom families to accept their claims to
‘helping’ their children (Agazue, 2016).
Religious institutions and religious ideologies and
doctrines incorporate a range of specific features that
shape the grooming process in several unique ways.
Religion is, fundamentally, a foundation for human
interaction and association: it fosters the establishment
of communities that allow for the “expression of shared
meanings” (McGuire, 2002, p. 25). Hence, situated
within the religious group, individuals interpret their
life experiences by drawing on the dominant meaning-
making systems that the religion provides (Hood Jr,
1998 McGuire, 2002). Religious institutions are adept
at maintaining their belief systems as the only objective
truths, and they normalize their beliefs and practices
inter-generationally via religious socialization.
This process of legitimation whereby religions posit
their unique relationship to the supernatural realm
(Berger, 1967/2011, p. 10) is vital because it allows
religions to confer a high level of status and capital
to their worldviews. Critically, when attempting to
understand the world, events that occur in it, as well as
their own experiences, religious adherents are likely to
turn to this worldview above others.12 Drawing on Peter
Berger, McGuire states, “The provision of meaning
is particularly important for an understanding of
religion because of the ways that meaning links the
individual with the larger social group. Meaning is
not inherent in a situation but bestowed” (McGuire,
2008, p. 27 [emphasis in the original]). The bestowal
of religious meaning is critical to our discussion.
Children especially may not have the wherewithal to
access alternative meaning systems when confronted
with abusive behaviors that offenders bestow with
religious significance. And, as Malcolm Hamilton
notes, “religion does not simply legitimate and make
sense of the social order. It makes sense of experiences
which might otherwise be disruptive and disordering”
(Hamilton, 1995, p. 162). That is to say, religions offer
theodicies to their adherents—explanations for why
terrible things can happen to individuals, despite the
existence of God.
3.2 Religious Power, Authority, and Patriarchy
Because “religious groups and institutions can be
understood as hierarchies of unequal power” (Shupe,
12 Commitment levels may vary a great deal among religious
adherents, especially within larger denominations and world religions.
Children often are influenced by their parents’ or other caregivers’ levels of
commitment, although other factors may influence.
2007, p. 6 [italics in the original]), congregants and
especially children have little to no access to religious
power. Furthermore, those who occupy a lower status
typically are taught to credit the institution as being
entirely compassionate, caring, reliable, and altruistic
religious leaders are supported as trusted and as
possessing great spiritual acumen and knowledge.
These dynamics allow religious leaders and authority
figures to use their “moral persuasion” within a unique
set of “special ‘opportunity structures’ for potential
exploitation, abuse and mismanagement” (Shupe,
2007, p. 6).
Religious power, authority, patriarchy, and opportunity
coalesce to foster conditions that some individuals
exploit to groom and sexually abuse children. In their
brief discussion of religious grooming, Tishelman and
Fontes (2017) found that sexual offenders used “the
authority of the religious institution to groom the child
and justify CSA [child sexual abuse]” (Tishelman &
Fontes, 2017, p. 123). They reported that in one case,
the offender referred to God’s authority, stating that
God had “ordained me to do this.” They found that
offenders who used appeals to religious authority made
the child more “compliant” to grooming. Moreover,
in some cases, abusers used religious narratives to
legitimate the grooming and abuse as part of the child’s
religious “education.” For example, this focus was
evident in a family where the adoptive father, a devout
Mormon, wanted to keep the “teaching and training at
home” (Tishelman &Fontes, 2017, p. 123). By drawing
on the religious meaning system and the importance
of religious “teachings,” offenders such as this one can
present grooming behaviors to children as uniquely
legitimate religious “lessons.”
In some cases, the grooming process even rests
upon the pretext of freeing the child from spiritual
malaise. In Nigeria, for example, some Pentecostal
pastors frequently groom children and their families
on the premise that they will help to free children
from demonic possession. The pastors then perform
‘exorcisms’ on them—a euphemism for the subsequent
sexual assaults. The pastors realize the absolute trust
that the community has in them and therefore are able
to effectively groom families to accept their claims to
‘helping’ their children (Agazue, 2016).
