Receive training to help your church avoid sexual abuse. In 1997, a watershed lawsuit—the Rudy Kos Case—resulted in a $119 million verdict against the Catholic church for child sexual abuse. Twenty years later, much of Christendom has still failed to grasp the fundamental risk of child sexual abuse and an appropriate response thereto.

Through the law firm of Love & Norris, sexual abuse experts Gregory Love and Kimberlee Norris have provided legal counsel to ministries since 1998, providing crisis response and preventative protocols related to child sexual abuse. MinistrySafe grew out of that experience, offering online training, policies and screening resources for churches and ministries.

Early on in their law practice, Love and Norris began to notice patterns in how abusers gained access to children in ministry settings. Sadly, the patterns remain the same. Why is this? Typically, the church does not understand the risk of child sexual abuse or how to properly address it; the efforts expended do not match the risk. Criminal Background Checks and Child Check-In Systems are inadequate; 90% of children are abused by someone they know and trust—not a stranger—and less than 10% of abusers will encounter the criminal justice system, therefore have no past criminal record to check.

Why MSI?

After decades of litigating cases and providing counsel to ministries, Love and Norris founded MinistrySafe Institute to equip ministry leaders with an understanding of the issues and how to best navigate through them. Ministry leaders continue to struggle with this risk because they lack information, tools and resources necessary to effectively prepare and respond.

What is MSI?

MSI is practical curriculum designed by sexual abuse attorneys to answer questions asked by ministry leaders concerning child sexual abuse topics. The core curriculum consists of 17+ hours of online content covering the following topics:

  • Module 1: Understanding Sexual Abuse in Ministry Contexts
  • Module 2: Creating an Effective Safety System
  • Module 3: Skillful Screening Processes and Training
  • Module 4: Abuse Reporting Requirements
  • Module 5: Allegations of Sexual Abuse: Preparation and Response Plan
  • Module 6: Sexual Abuse Legislation and Changes in the Law

Written materials created by industry experts support each module.

To learn more about MinistrySafe Institute, see MinistrySafeInstitute.com.