Bible-Based Healing for Victims of ISIS, Boko Haram
The visible aftermath of the terror wrought by groups like ISIS and Boko Haram is devastatingly obvious: dead bodies in the streets; men, women and children left homeless, their bodies bleeding and broken; and makeshift refugee communities popping up across the more stable areas of the Middle East.
While the visible aftermath is appalling, the invisible aftermath — the trauma that wrecks the mind and spirit of so many survivors — is no less horrific.
Hussam, a Syrian refugee, is living with the trauma caused by being a first-hand witness to terror. During an attack by ISIS on his largely Christian neighborhood, Hussam stood just 20 yards away as a mortar was dropped on a bus filled with children. When he ran to help, he saw that seven children and the driver had been killed. Never had Hussam been so close to the tragic outcomes of war.
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After fleeing Syria, Hussam found refuge in Jordan. But the trauma he experienced followed him to his new home. He had nightmares for four months from the horror of what he witnessed. He could not get the images of the children out of his head. He said he was changed for having witnessed such death and destruction. When Hussam's pastor told him about American Bible Society's Bible-based trauma healing training, he was eager to not only find some healing for himself, but also to learn how to help others cope with the kind of trauma he had experienced.
In Jordan, healing those invisible wounds of the heart is critical for Iraqi and Syrian refugees who, like Hussam, have flooded into the country after experiencing violence and war. Seeking to help the growing refugee community, many Christian leaders requested a Bible-based trauma healing training in this region. As a result, this powerful Scripture engagement strategy was held in Jordan for the first time. The four-day session was sponsored by the Bible Society of Jordan with support from American Bible Society. During the sessions, Christian leaders like Hussam were both ministered to and trained to help people from a variety of backgrounds.
This Bible-based trauma healing program was first used to help heal those victimized by terror groups across the Great Lakes region of Africa. The program combines biblical and counseling resources into an effective intervention that fosters healing and restores relationships with God and others. The training offers people dealing with trauma after experiencing war, violence, abuse or natural disaster the hope of God's Word in conjunction with best practices in mental health. Currently, Bible-based trauma healing is active in sixty-eight countries and has impacted 1.3 million lives.
For Hussam, the trauma-healing training has been life changing. In addition to helping to restore his own peace, he now meets with others to talk about what they have experienced and help them cope with their own trauma. He is looking forward to sharing how God loves and cherishes hurting people.
As Westerners who want to help those affected by violence and persecution, it would be easy to focus on the visible aftermath that we see on the news and ignore the very real spiritual and psychological trauma that goes unseen. My hope is that we will minister to the victims of violence by addressing their physical, psychological and spiritual needs. There are thousands of people like Hussam who are still waiting. Please come with us.
