Survivor-Centered Approaches: Implementation in Religious Institutions (Essay Sample)

SURVIVOR–CENTERED APPROACHES: IMPLEMENTATION IN RELIGIOUS INSTITUTIONS
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Course
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Institution
The City and the State of Institution
Date
Survivor-centered Approaches: Implementation in Religious Institutions
Introduction
Over the previous several years, the number of assault cases has increased. The offenders are usually family or close friends of the victim. However, occasions when the perpetrator and the victim were strangers, are also significant. In either case, victims often find it difficult to speak up about their experiences and prefer to suffer in silence. Things usually worsen when the culprit is a friend, a family member, or a prominent figure who is morally upright in the face of the public, such as a religious leader. Rigpa Sangha, a Tibetan Buddhist teacher and best-selling author of the Tibetan Book of Living and Dying, found himself in a similar predicament after being accused of physically and psychologically abusing his students (Dyson, Newland & Wicks 2019). Seven of his former students, headed by artist and former nun Damcho Dyson, made the allegations. This is one of the many cases where the offender is a religious figure. The rampant cases of religious leaders being offenders and the tendency by the victims to seek help in religion necessitate implementing survivor-centered approaches in religious institutions. Putting these approaches into practice is crucial because they attempt to prioritize the rights of each victim and guarantee that each survivor receives humane treatment -with dignity and respect. The approaches create a supportive environment without victim-blaming attitudes and total respect for survivors' rights. In addition, a survivor-centered system ensures the victim's privacy and anonymity rather than exposing them.
Religious institutions should be a haven where people can freely practice their religion without fear of rights violation. Religious freedom is a fundamental right that deserves complete protection (Poulos 2019). It is the right to think, speak, and act according to what one genuinely believes, following their conscience. Religious freedom protects everyone—religious and non-religious alike. Consequently, it deters the majority of government officeholders from using the state's authority to force their beliefs on others.
Below are the theories explaining religious freedom and its importance to humans;
Theories of Religious Freedom
Critical Theory. Critical theory is a