It's lovely that you are experiencing a strong, healthy relationship! I ( and a greater percentage of the population) did not, and a good portion of the abuse that I Survived was based upon a deliberate perversion of simple doctrines.

Religfious and spiritual abuse are powerful and, in some cases, fatal: "Heaven' Gate," Jim Jones' "People's Church," David Koresh, the Spanish Inquisition, and so on. But, wait a minute! What do those examples have to do with domestic violence and abuse?


Abuse is abuse, whether it's at the hands of a spouse, brother, sister, uncle, aunt, in-law, coworker, supervisor, or spiritual/religious leader. In many cases of domestic violence and abuse, either the warped religious interpretations or organizational doctrines are used (in part, or in whole) to perpetrate the most heinous of sins against other human beings. It is estimated that 60% of the population either currently lives in an abusive environment, or has Survived one and that 90% of ALL domestic violence and abuse in all of its forms is perpetrated in front of children. The current recognized statistic is that 1 out of 22 human beings are sociopaths - human beings who lack conscience, empathy, or remorse.

So, as I mentioned, spiritual and religious abuse incldes:
*demanding that the victim accepts the abuser's religious views in order to be recognized as a "worthy" human being
*coercing another human being to convert to the abuser's religion for ANY reason
*ridiculing or belittling another person for their religious or spiritual beleifs
*preventing someone from attending their place of worship or participating in their rituals to punish or control
*bartering with the victim so that they "earn" the privilege of practicing their beliefs and rituals (I.e., trading sex to attend services)
*coersion of financial contributions in order to gain favor
Etc.

Thanks for your comments _ it's nice to know that someone is ejoying a healthy partnership! :-D. Brightest blessings!