This week was a hard one.
Joining David French and me this week on the Good Faith podcast is special guest Nancy French. In a departure from her normal work as a best selling author, Nancy has spent the last two years investigating cases of sexual abuse and institutional coverup at one of the nations largest Christian summer camps, Kanakuk Kamps in Branson, Missouri.
Her two years of investigative work revealed heart-breaking and tragic news, but we go beyond mere reporting on what happened. In this podcast, we talk about why it’s essential to talk about “bad news” in order to get to the “good news.” We help frame the sex cover up at Kanakuk in the broader context our own callings: to tell the truth about the institutions we engage with and also to work toward their repentance and repair. We also discuss how institutions can fall into the trap of idolizing their own image over God’s (more about that here) and ultimately how all of this tragedy can point us to a time when all tears will be dried and all things will be made new.
But I do want to provide a warning. This subject matter is grave and could be triggering to those who have suffered abuse. I also would caution you not to listen to this with small children.
If you would like to read the investigative journalism of Nancy French about Kanakuk, here are her recent articles.
- Survivors, Ex-employees Say Unreported Abuse at Kanakuk Kamps in Branson Spans Decades
- Kanakuk Camper Says She was Told to Apologize, Denied Call Home after Reporting Abuse
- ‘It Was Just a Thing at Kanakuk’: Campers and Staff Say Nudity was Part of Camp Culture
- From the editor: How we reported stories about sex abuse at Kanakuk Kamps
The Good Faith podcast comes out every Saturday on The Dispatch. Listen and subscribe here or wherever you listen to podcasts.
Curtis Chang is the founder of Redeeming Babel.
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