by Kevin Nelson

Image by: Community and Institutional Ministries

It was getting late, and Julia had just finished putting her two-year-old son, Jonathan, to bed when her husband, Tom, arrived home. Tom, a Marine whose family lived on the military base, had been out drinking excessively with his buddies. Not knowing when Tom would get home, Julia had not prepared dinner yet. When Tom discovered dinner was not ready, he furiously asked Julia why. When Julia didn't respond immediately, still feeling slightly tipsy from alcohol, Tom walked into the living room and tripped over his son Jonathan's toy. Now Tom was angry and started yelling at Julia--about the dinner, about "the mess," about what she'd been doing all day…. Julia yelled back and a verbal fight ensued. It ended when Tom struck Julia across her face. She grabbed her son, ran to their next-door neighbor, and called the military police for help. It wasn't the first time she had called police.

This story is based on an actual incident between a couple (names were changed to protect their identities). In this case, Tom's commanding officer forced him to take anger management classes and other significant steps. Eventually, Tom was able to get his anger under control and stopped drinking excessively. Unlike others facing similar situations, Tom and Julia dealt with the problem and are now happily married. According to the US Bureau of Justice Statistics, two-thirds of domestic violence victims reported that their current or former spouse or partner had been drinking before the incident occurred.

Tom didn't commit violence because he had been drinking. He had pre-existing anger management issues, and the excessive drinking may have lowered his inhibitions or impaired his thinking, resulting in violence when the argument escalated.

Incidents of violence and substance abuse occur on a daily basis. There is a correlation between alcohol and violence, although there is not a direct cause and effect. Substance abuse does not cause violence, and substance abusers do not necessarily commit violent acts. By the same token, substance abuse treatment cannot cure violence.

When people with existing anger management issues or violent temperaments abuse a substance, however, it becomes more likely that their inhibitions will be reduced or their thinking impaired. Consequently, they may act violently. The World Health Organization (WHO) found that persons who commit violence are more likely to abuse substances than people without a history of committing violence.

Violence related to substance abuse is a serious issue across the world. WHO's 2002 "World Report on Violence and Health" revealed that alcohol and substance abuse are associated with all interpersonal forms of violence. Some manifestations include youth violence, sexual violence, gang violence, assault, homicide, and suicide. Another grievous manifestation relates to violence in times of war.

In conflict-ridden parts of the world, children are often used as combatants in armed conflicts. In these cases, child recruits are frequently given drugs or alcohol to encourage them to fight in conflicts, thereby creating substance dependency.

Substance Abuse in War

The Rev. Jorge Domingues, the General Board of Global Ministry's interim deputy general secretary for Justice and Discipleship, recounted a story he heard at a recent conference in Europe. In wartorn Liberia, Toimu (name changed) and other young boys were rounded up, kidnapped by soldiers, and forced into a secluded area.

The soldiers asked the group of boys to select six boys who would leave their group. Six boys were selected, but Toimu was not part of the group; he was number seven. The soldiers led the six boys out of the room. The boys left behind sat in silence and feared for their young lives. Seconds later, they heard gunshots and chilling screams. The six boys had been murdered at point-blank range. Later, a soldier guarding the surviving boys told them to get up and run as fast as they could. The boys, not knowing if this was another set up or not, ran as told and escaped with their lives.

Years later, after the war had ended, Toimu, now an active leader in the United Methodist Church in Liberia, saw the former soldier who had saved his life--on the street, living as a beggar. He approached the man to thank him for helping him to escape. The man blankly stared at Toimu and said he didn't remember the incident because as a young soldier he was always under the influence of drugs and alcohol. Toimu invited him to the church, and today that ex-soldier's life has also been saved by the same boy whom he had let escape.

The drugging of child soldiers is far too common in countries enduring war. For many former child soldiers, substance abuse continues long after the war is over. It is often a coping mechanism for mental and psychosocial health challenges developed during the period of armed conflict.

At the societal level, substance abuse and related violence are two aspects of a variety of interweaving issues, including youth violence, child abuse, partner violence, and mental illness, causing what WHO calls "a web of societal dysfunction." Other factors include developmental and cultural influences, drug pharmacology (depending on the nature or degree of cognitive impairment), and social, economic, and situational conditions.

SPSARV

In 1990 as the United States experienced a dramatic rise in drug-related violence, The United Methodist Church recognized the correlation between addiction and violence and asked the question: "Where is the Church and what is its role in drugs and drug-related violence?"

For the next two years, Bishop Felton Edwin May (now retired) led a churchwide study to examine alcohol, other drugs, and related violence to develop the denomination's response. (The study findings led to the creation of the United Methodist Special Program on Substance Abuse and Related Violence.)

The church has a calling to respond to brokenness in the world. It is important for congregations and communities to know that:

• Substance abuse-related violence includes domestic, youth, sexual, gang, and wartime violence; assault, homicide, and suicide. The contributing factor that separates violence in these contexts from other forms of violence is substance abuse.
• Substance abuse does not cause violence, and not all persons who abuse substances become violent.
• With pre-existing tendencies toward violence, substance abuse is often a factor when a person becomes increasingly violent.
• The treatment of substance abuse and addiction will not eliminate violent tendencies in individuals, nor will the treatment of violent behavior eliminate substance abuse and addiction. Both need to be treated.
• Substance abuse and related forms of violence are widespread. It is common for congregations to have members who either experience or are affected by them. Thus, there is a broad social need for the church to provide ministries in this area.

Steps Your Church Can Take to Address Violence Related to Substance Abuse

• Churches must create a support system for responding to domestic violence concerns, including posting hotlines in places where those who need help can access it; maintaining a list of shelters for women and children; and offering referrals to professional counselors who deal with anger management or addiction.
• Working in partnership with countries recovering from war to establish rehabilitation programs to help soldiers who were drug induced to fight in civil wars, helping them to heal and be reintergrated back into the community.
• Advocate for local, national, and global policies that protect domestic violence victims.
• Educate youth and young adults about substance abuse-related violence such as date rape, drunk driving, vandalism, etc., helping them to make wise choices in independent situations.
• Support gang-related prevention, intervention, and rehabilitation ministries.

>>Articles on National Recovery Month

Special Program on Substance Abuse and Related Violence (SPSARV)

Since its inception in 1992, SPSARV has galvanized the United Methodist connection to respond to alcohol, other drug and related violence issues. While the general church has made substance abuse and related violence a priority, this global health epidemic continues to rise dramatically. The Church is and must continue to be at the forefront of responding to this global crisis.

Worldwide, people in church pews are suffering silently because of their addiction or their loved one's addiction. They need their church community to be informed, compassionate and responsive to their needs. SPSARV represents the Church's commitment to replace the brokenness of the disease of addiction with the promise of God's hope, healing, health and wholeness. Join us in making a witness to God's promise.

Your support will provide SPSARV with the resources for an effective churchwide response to alcohol, chemical abuse and dependency and its related violence. Give to Response to Alcohol and Other Drugs Concerns, Advance #982598, equipping United Methodists around the world to respond to alcohol, drugs, and related violence.

	See Also... Topic: Communities |  Family |  Health |  Violence |  Focus on Global Health |  Source: GBGM Mission News
	Print this page Email this article

Date posted: Sep 23, 2009