Resources
There are a large number of helpful books that can equip you to recognize the warning signs of an abusive/authoritarian church or organization, or to help you recover from your experience. If you wish to suggest other books, or if you have written a review of a book that you would like to share, please submit them to us.
(Note: Although there's much wisdom, insights, and good teaching in most of these books, you may wish to seek professional counseling if your case is extremely traumatic.)
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Legalism, Spiritual Abuse and Authoritarianism
- Battered Into Submission: The Tragedy of Wife Abuse in the Christian Home by James Alsdurf and Phyllis Alsdurf
- Faith That Hurts, Faith That Heals: Understanding the Fine Line Between Healthy Faith and Spiritual Abuse by Stephen Arterburn, Jack Felton
- Betrayal by Randall Arthur
- Wisdom Hunter by Randall Arthur
- Cultures of Secrecy and Abuse: A Paradox for Churches by Cara Beed
- Damaged Disciples: Casualties of Authoritarian Churches and the Shepherding Movement by Ron and Vicki Burks
- Twisted Scriptures: A Path to Freedom From Abusive Churches by Mary Alice Chrnalogar
- Churches That Abuse by Ronald M. Enroth
- Is Nothing Sacred? The Story of a Pastor, the Women He Sexually Abused, and the Congregation He Nearly Destroyed by Marie Fortune
- Serpents in the Manger: Overcoming Abusive Christianity by Jerry L. Harris, Melody J. Milam
- The Subtle Power of Spiritual Abuse by David Johnson, Jeff VanVonderen
- The Drift into Deception: The Eight Characteristics of Abusive Christianity by Agnes C. Lawless, John W. Lawless
- Growing Up Fundamentalist: Journeys in Legalism and Grace by Stefan Ultsein
- Tired of Trying to Measure Up by Jeff VanVonderen
- Exposing Spiritual Abuse by Mike Fehlauer
- Toxic Faith: Experiencing Healing From Painful Spiritual Abuse by Stephen Arterburn and Jack Felton
- I Can't Hear God Anymore: Life in a Dallas Cult by Wendy J. Duncan
- The Heresy of Mind Control: Recognizing Con Artists in Leadership by Stephen Martin
Dialogue, Conflict Resolution, Church Discipline
- Handbook of Church Discipline by Jay Adams
- Caring Enough to Confront by David W. Augsburger
- When Caring Is Not Enough: Resolving Conflicts Through Fair Fighting by David W. Augsburger
- Caring Enough to Hear and Be Heard: How to Hear and How to Be Heard in Equal Communication by David W. Augsburger
- Authority, Leadership and Conflict in the Church by Paul D. L. Avis
- Never Call Them Jerks by Arthur Paul Boers
- Church Conflict: The Hidden System Behind the Fights by Charles H. Cosgrove, Dennis D. Hatfield
- When Christians Clash: How to Prevent and Resolve the Pain of Conflict by Horace Fenton
- When the Saints Come Storming in by Leslie B. Flynn
- Communication and Conflict Management in Churches and Christian Organizations by Kenneth O. Gangel, Samuel L. Canine
- Antagonists in the Church: How to Identify and Deal With Destructive Conflict by Kenneth C. Haugk
- The Trauma of Transparency: A Biblical Approach to Inter-Personal Communication by J. Grant Howard
- Conflict and Caring: Preventing, Managing, and Resolving Conflict in the Church by Keith Huttenlocker
- Fight to the Better End by G. Brian Jones, Linda Phillips-Jones
- Discover Your Conflict Management Style by Speed B. Leas
- The Journey Toward Reconciliation by John Paul Lederach
- Conflict Management in Congregation by David B. Lott (Editor)
- Resolving Disputes in Christian Groups by Marlin E. Thomas
- War in the Pews: A Foxhole Guide to Surviving Church Conflict by Frank Martin
- Surviving Church Conflict by Dave Peters
- More Light, Less Heat: How Dialogue Can Transform Christian Conflicts into Growth by Joseph Phelps
- The Peacemaker: A Biblical Guide to Resolving Personal Conflict by Ken Sande
- Leading Your Church Through Conflict and Reconciliation: 30 Ways to Transform Your Ministry by Marshall Shelley (Editor), Timothy Jones (Editor)
- Well-Intentioned Dragons: Ministering to Problem People in the Church by Marshall Shelley
- Making Peace With Conflict: Practical Skills for Conflict Transformation by Carolyn Shrock-Shenk (Editor), Lawrence Ressler (Editor)
- The Christian's Handbook on Conflict Resolution: Biblical Principles for Restoring and Preventing Broken Relationships by Greg M. Sumii
- Firestorm: Preventing and Overcoming Church Conflicts by Ron Susek
- War of Words: Getting to the Heart of Your Communication Struggles by Paul David Tripp
- Free to Disagree: Moving Beyond the Arguments over Christian Liberty by John Wecks
- War in the Pews by Chester Weigle
- Church Discipline That Heals: Putting Costly Love into Action by John White, Ken Blue
- Healing the Wounded: The Costly Love of Church Discipline by John White, Ken Blue
Forgiveness and Recovery
- From Forgiven To Forgiving by Jay Adams
- Bold Love by Dan B. Allender, Tremper Longman
- Caring Enough to Forgive by David W. Augsburger
- Helping People Forgive by David W. Augsburger
- The New Freedom of Forgiveness by David W. Augsburger
- Healing Spiritual Abuse: How to Break Free from Bad Church Experiences by Ken Blue
- Hope When You're Hurting by Dr. Larry Crabb, Dr. Dan B. Allender
- Encouragement by Larry Crabb, Dan B. Allender
- Recovering From Churches That Abuse by Ronald M. Enroth
- Forgive! As the Lord Forgave You by Patrick H. Morison
- Anger: Escaping the Maze by David Powlison
- The Art of Forgiving: When You Need to Forgive and Don't Know How by Lewis B. Smedes
- Forgive and Forget: Healing the Hurts We Don't Deserve by Lewis B. Smedes
- When God's People Let You Down/How to Rise Above Hurts That Often Occur Within the Church by Jeffrey VanVonderen
- When People Are Big and God is Small: Overcoming Peer Pressure, Codependency, and the Fear of Man by Edward T. Welch
- Church: Why Bother? by Philip Yancey
- Soul Survivor: How My Faith Survived the Church by Philip Yancey
- To Love Mercy: Becoming a Person of Compassion, Acceptance, & Forgiveness by C. Samuel Storms
Biblical Leadership
- Shepherds and Sheep: A Biblical View of Leading and Following by Jerram Barrs
- Team Leadership in Christian Ministry: Using Multiple Gifts to Build a Unified Vision by Kenneth O. Gangel
- Church Leadership by Lawrence (Larry) Richards, Clyde Hoeldtke
- Biblical Eldership by Alexander Strauch
- Pastors Off the Record: Straight Talk About Life in the Ministry by Stefan Ultsein
- Jesus on Leadership by C. Gene Wilkes
Theological and Miscellaneous
- Essays on Freedom and Power by John Acton
- Connecting by Lawrence (Larry) Crabb
- The Safest Place on Earth by Lawrence (Larry) Crabb
- The Religion of Power by Cheryl Forbes
- Embodying Forgiveness: A Theological Analysis by L. Gregory Jones
- Reframing Paul: Conversations in Grace and Community by Mark Strom
- Exclusion and Embrace: A Theological Exploration of Identity, Otherness, and Reconciliation by Miroslav Volf
- What's So Amazing About Grace? by Philip Yancey
- Exit Interviews: Revealing Stories of Why People Are Leaving the Church by William Hendricks
- Love in Hard Places by D. A. Carson
Disclaimer: Inclusion of a resource here does not
necessarily imply agreement or endorsement.