W E E K O N E

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. ~ John 3:17 ~

W E L C O M E

Asha, in Hindi, means hope. That’s what this little volume is about: journeying towards hope – even in the deepest darkness.

There is something terribly wrong with our world, a world where women and girls are abused.¹ We may ask: ‘How can such horrors happen?’ and ‘Where is God in all of this?’

These questions echo throughout this booklet, and while you might not find tidy answers, you will discover more about the heart of God for the brokenhearted.

Forming the core of Asha: A Journey of Hope is a portion of the Bible, from the Gospel of John, a brief history written in the first century AD. The Gospel of John tells us how Jesus lived, what he taught and how he interacted with all kinds of people, including people in the midst of trauma.

In his encounters and conversations with people, as recorded in the Gospel of John, Jesus made seven bold statements about who he is:

‘I am the true vine’, ‘I am the gate’, ‘I am the bread of life’, ‘I am the good shepherd’, ‘I am the light’, ‘I am the way, the truth and the life’ and ‘I am the resurrection and the life.’

Asha explores each of Jesus’ ‘I am’ statements in light of how they apply to women who’ve suffered abuse. It also features the stories of individual women and girls who’ve bravely entrusted to us the details of their own stories of trauma.²

While this book offers comfort, you may at times feel uncomfortable reading about some of hard things these women have endured. As you learn more about the jagged realities of trauma and more about Jesus’ fierce and compassionate response, we pray that your heart will be enlarged and that you will be emboldened to pursue rescue, justice and healing, firstly for yourself (if you’ve experienced trauma), and for those who have … and who are, at this very moment, experiencing unfathomable pain.

Why we must not be silent

The statistics concerning women subject to gender-based violence and abuse³⁴ are staggering and tend to overwhelm the readers to the point of numbing and somehow normalising it because of its commonness. We hope to shatter the myth of normalcy superimposed on and surrounding these women by a silent society and aim to show them as they truly are – not statistics but living and breathing human beings.

The booklet also emphasises the Christian point of view that these abused and traumatised women were created in God’s image and are loved by him through the Messiah, Jesus Christ, who offers them asha today and every day.

At the same time, the true stories and reflections on the ‘I am’ Scriptures present a challenge and an exhortation to the reader and pose the question as to whether or not we are willing to be part of creating trauma-sensitive cultures within the Christian community. Is it possible to step into this space? Is it possible to take on Christ’s vision to set the captives free and to heal the brokenhearted? Whatever the choice, silence is not an option. Silence is violence. Elie Wiesel, a survivor of a Nazi concentration camp, said in his acceptance speech of the Nobel Peace Prize:

I swore never to be silent whenever and wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation. We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented. Sometimes we must interfere. When human lives are endangered, when human dignity is in jeopardy, national borders and sensitivities become irrelevant. Wherever men or women are persecuted … that place must – at that moment – become the center of the universe.⁵

What is trauma?

The definitions may vary according to the fields wherein the notion is studied – medicine, psychology, neuroscience, etc. The Trauma Healing Institute offers this basic summary: ‘Trauma is a wounding of the heart.’ It says, ‘We experience trauma in the form of loss of a loved one, failures, illness, abuse, violence, and neglect, to name a few. We can be wounded by our direct experience, by witnessing someone else’s suffering, and even by hearing of someone’s trauma.’⁶

The experience of prolonged or repeated trauma over a period of time is understood as complex trauma. Such trauma is mostly interpersonal in nature, examples of which are childhood abuse (emotional, physical, sexual or neglect), domestic violence (being abused or witnessing abuse), bullying, physical violence, rape, sexual violence and torture.

These experiences of violence and abuse render the person fearful, helpless, powerless, living in a state of heightened threat. These effects are far more damaging when the trauma occurs in childhood.

In her seminal work, Trauma and Recovery, Judith Herman, a renowned psychiatrist who has studied post-traumatic stress disorder and the sexual abuse of women and children, describes the psychological impact of trauma as:

… an affliction of the powerless. At the moment of trauma, the victim is rendered helpless by overwhelming force. When the force is that of nature, we speak of disasters, but when the force is that of other human beings, we speak of atrocities. Traumatic events overwhelm the ordinary systems of care that give people a sense of control, connection and meaning… The common denominator of psychological trauma is a feeling of ‘intense fear, helplessness, loss of control and threat of annihilation.’⁷

Trauma is experienced as immense changes in emotion, cognition, memory and physiological arousal. Traumatised individuals may experience anxiety, fear, mood swings, deep sadness, nightmares and intrusive memories (long after the danger has passed, traumatised people relive the event as though it were continually recurring in the present). They have small windows of emotional tolerance. They struggle with shame, guilt, low self-worth, and mistrust of others and even of themselves. They may experience difficulty in their relationships, in terms of intimacy, sexuality and body image. Extremes, like emotional numbing or emotional arousal, hypervigilance, despair or deadening, very rigid boundaries or the complete collapse thereof, are some of the visible effects of trauma. They tend to cope with their ‘unbearable state of mind and emotions’ in a variety of ways like avoidance, numbing, self-harm, substance abuse, promiscuity or food abuse (bingeing, purging).

Traumatic experiences also shatter one’s world and all that one believed was safe, trustworthy and secure, like relationships, love, family and community. Trauma destroys one’s sense of self, sense of belonging and sense of value and worth. Says Herman, ‘Traumatized people feel utterly abandoned, utterly alone, cast out of the human and divine systems of care and protection that sustain life.’ Though individual responses vary, the wide range of experiences and effects of trauma as well as its far-reaching realms of impact on the body, mind, emotions and spirit, overwhelming their social functioning, interpersonal relationships, sense of control and agency thus speak of the pervasive nature of trauma.

In addition to the personal trauma experienced, the nature of abuse that the stories in this booklet describe, bring with it, silence, isolation and shame that is both personal and imposed by society. In the absence of help and hope, resignation follows.

Roadmap for reading

Whether you are reading this book with a group or on your own, this roadmap will help you get the most from this nine-week journey you are about to embark upon. You can choose to further divide the assigned weekly Scripture reading and extend the journey to suit your/your group’s needs.

Each week contains:

‘I AM’ is the name by which God introduced himself to Moses, as recorded in Exodus, the second book of the Bible (Exodus 3:14).

Centuries later, Jesus asserted his own claim to the nature and essence of deity by expanding on the ‘I AM’ with images from everyday life, helping us to more fully understand who he is and who he wants to be in our lives.

Jesus said,

I am …

  • … the bread of life – John 6:35
  • … the light of the world – John 8:12
  • … the gate – John 10:9
  • … the good shepherd – John 10:11, 14
  • … the resurrection and the life – John 11:25
  • … the way and the truth and the life – John 14:6
  • … the vine – John 15:1, 5

As you read John 1–4:42, take time to notice the characters, their responses and the themes you encounter.

Who was Jesus and how did he define his purpose on earth?

Notice …

1:1 – 1:25

JOHN 1 – 4 : 4 2

The Word became flesh

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning.

3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind.

5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

6 There was a man sent from God whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe.

8 He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light.

9 The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognise him. 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God – 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.

14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

15 (John testified concerning him. He cried out, saying, ‘This is the one I spoke about when I said, “He who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.” ’) 16 Out of his fullness we have all received grace in place of grace already given. 17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 No-one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in the closest relationship with the Father, has made him known.

John the Baptist denies being the Messiah

19 Now this was John’s testimony when the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to ask him who he was. 20 He did not fail to confess, but confessed freely, ‘I am not the Messiah.’

21 They asked him, ‘Then who are you? Are you Elijah?’

He said, ‘I am not.’

‘Are you the Prophet?’

He answered, ‘No.’

22 Finally they said, ‘Who are you? Give us an answer to take back to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?’

23 John replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet, ‘I am the voice of one calling in the wilderness, “Make straight the way for the Lord.” ’

24 Now the Pharisees who had been sent 25 questioned him, ‘Why then do you baptise if you are not the Messiah, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?’

1:26 – 1:46

26 ‘I baptise with water,’ John replied, ‘but among you stands one you do not know. 27 He is the one who comes after me, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.’

28 This all happened at Bethany on the other side of the Jordan, where John was baptising.

John testifies about Jesus

29 The next day John saw Jesus coming towards him and said, ‘Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! 30 This is the one I meant when I said, “A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.” 31 I myself did not know him, but the reason I came baptising with water was that he might be revealed to Israel.’

32 Then John gave this testimony: ‘I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him. 33 And I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptise with water told me, “The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is the one who will baptise with the Holy Spirit.” 34 I have seen and I testify that this is God’s Chosen One.’

John’s disciples follow Jesus

35 The next day John was there again with two of his disciples. 36 When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, ‘Look, the Lamb of God!’

37 When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus. 38 Turning round, Jesus saw them following and asked, ‘What do you want?’

They said, ‘Rabbi’ (which means ‘Teacher’), ‘where are you staying?’

39 ‘Come,’ he replied, ‘and you will see.’

So they went and saw where he was staying, and they spent that day with him. It was about four in the afternoon.

40 Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus. 41 The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, ‘We have found the Messiah’ (that is, the Christ). 42 And he brought him to Jesus.

Jesus looked at him and said, ‘You are Simon son of John. You will be called Cephas’ (which, when translated, is Peter).

Jesus calls Philip and Nathanael

43 The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee. Finding Philip, he said to him, ‘Follow me.’

44 Philip, like Andrew and Peter, was from the town of Bethsaida. 45 Philip found Nathanael and told him, ‘We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote – Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.’

46 ‘Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?’ Nathanael asked.

‘Come and see,’ said Philip.

1:47 – 2:17

47 When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, ‘Here truly is an Israelite in whom there is no deceit.’

48 ‘How do you know me?’ Nathanael asked.

Jesus answered, ‘I saw you while you were still under the fig-tree before Philip called you.’

49 Then Nathanael declared, ‘Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the king of Israel.’

50 Jesus said, ‘You believe because I told you I saw you under the fig-tree. You will see greater things than that.’ 51 He then added, ‘Very truly I tell you, you will see “heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on” the Son of Man.’

Jesus changes water into wine

2 On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, 2 and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. 3 When the wine was gone, Jesus’ mother said to him, ‘They have no more wine.’

4 ‘Woman, why do you involve me?’ Jesus replied. ‘My hour has not yet come.’

5 His mother said to the servants, ‘Do whatever he tells you.’

6 Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from eighty to a hundred and twenty litres.

7 Jesus said to the servants, ‘Fill the jars with water’; so they filled them to the brim.

8 Then he told them, ‘Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.’ They did so, 9 and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. He did not realise where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside 10 and said, ‘Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now.’

11 What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.

12 After this he went down to Capernaum with his mother and brothers and his disciples. There they stayed for a few days.

Jesus clears the temple courts

13 When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 14 In the temple courts he found people selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money. 15 So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple courts, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money-changers and overturned their tables. 16 To those who sold doves he said, ‘Get these out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a market!’

17 His disciples remembered that it is written:

‘Zeal for your house will consume me.’

2:18 – 3:18

18 The Jews then responded to him, ‘What sign can you show us to prove your authority to do all this?’

19 Jesus answered them, ‘Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.’

20 They replied, ‘It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and you are going to raise it in three days?’ 21 But the temple he had spoken of was his body. 22 After he was raised from the dead, his disciples recalled what he had said. Then they believed the Scripture and the words that Jesus had spoken.

23 Now while he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Festival, many people saw the signs he was performing and believed in his name. 24 But Jesus would not entrust himself to them, for he knew all people. 25 He did not need any testimony about mankind, for he knew what was in each person.

Jesus teaches Nicodemus

3 Now there was a Pharisee, a man named Nicodemus who was a member of the Jewish ruling council. 2 He came to Jesus at night and said, ‘Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no-one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with him.’

3 Jesus replied, ‘Very truly I tell you, no-one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.’

4 ‘How can someone be born when they are old?’ Nicodemus asked. ‘Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!’

5 Jesus answered, ‘Very truly I tell you, no-one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. 6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. 7 You should not be surprised at my saying, “You must be born again.” 8 The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.’

9 ‘How can this be?’ Nicodemus asked.

10 ‘You are Israel’s teacher,’ said Jesus, ‘and do you not understand these things? 11 Very truly I tell you, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, but still you people do not accept our testimony. 12 I have spoken to you of earthly things and you do not believe; how then will you believe if I speak of heavenly things? 13 No-one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven – the Son of Man. 14 Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, 15 that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.’

16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.

3:19 – 4:9

19 This is the verdict: light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20 Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. 21 But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.

John testifies again about Jesus

22 After this, Jesus and his disciples went out into the Judean countryside, where he spent some time with them, and baptised. 23 Now John also was baptising at Aenon near Salim, because there was plenty of water, and people were coming and being baptised. 24 (This was before John was put in prison.) 25 An argument developed between some of John’s disciples and a certain Jew over the matter of ceremonial washing. 26 They came to John and said to him, ‘Rabbi, that man who was with you on the other side of the Jordan – the one you testified about – look, he is baptising, and everyone is going to him.’

27 To this John replied, ‘A person can receive only what is given them from heaven. 28 You yourselves can testify that I said, “I am not the Messiah but am sent ahead of him.” 29 The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend who attends the bridegroom waits and listens for him, and is full of joy when he hears the bridegroom’s voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete. 30 He must become greater; I must become less.’

31 The one who comes from above is above all; the one who is from the earth belongs to the earth, and speaks as one from the earth. The one who comes from heaven is above all. 32 He testifies to what he has seen and heard, but no-one accepts his testimony. 33 Whoever has accepted it has certified that God is truthful. 34 For the one whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Spirit without limit. 35 The Father loves the Son and has placed everything in his hands. 36 Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them.

Jesus talks with a Samaritan woman

4 Now Jesus learned that the Pharisees had heard that he was gaining and baptising more disciples than John – 2 although in fact it was not Jesus who baptised, but his disciples. 3 So he left Judea and went back once more to Galilee.

4 Now he had to go through Samaria. 5 So he came to a town in Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of ground Jacob had given to his son Joseph. 6 Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about noon.

7 When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, ‘Will you give me a drink?’ 8 (His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.)

9 The Samaritan woman said to him, ‘You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?’ (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.)

4:10 – 4:36

10 Jesus answered her, ‘If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.’

11 ‘Sir,’ the woman said, ‘you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? 12 Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his livestock?’

13 Jesus answered, ‘Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 14 but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.’

15 The woman said to him, ‘Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.’

16 He told her, ‘Go, call your husband and come back.’

17 ‘I have no husband,’ she replied.

Jesus said to her, ‘You are right when you say you have no husband. 18 The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have just said is quite true.’

19 ‘Sir,’ the woman said, ‘I can see that you are a prophet. 20 Our ancestors worshipped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem.’

21 ‘Woman,’ Jesus replied, ‘believe me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. 22 You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23 Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshippers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshippers the Father seeks. 24 God is spirit, and his worshippers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.’

25 The woman said, ‘I know that Messiah’ (called Christ) ‘is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.’

26 Then Jesus declared, ‘I, the one speaking to you – I am he.’

The disciples rejoin Jesus

27 Just then his disciples returned and were surprised to find him talking with a woman. But no-one asked, ‘What do you want?’ or ‘Why are you talking with her?’

28 Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, 29 ‘Come, see a man who told me everything I’ve ever done. Could this be the Messiah?’ 30 They came out of the town and made their way towards him.

31 Meanwhile his disciples urged him, ‘Rabbi, eat something.’

32 But he said to them, ‘I have food to eat that you know nothing about.’

33 Then his disciples said to each other, ‘Could someone have brought him food?’

34 ‘My food,’ said Jesus, ‘is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. 35 Don’t you have a saying, “It’s still four months until harvest”? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest. 36 Even now the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together.

4:37 – 4:42

37 Thus the saying “One sows and another reaps” is true. 38 I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labour.’

Many Samaritans believe

39 Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, ‘He told me everything I’ve ever done.’ 40 So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days. 41 And because of his words many more became believers.

42 They said to the woman, ‘We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Saviour of the world.’

Jesus heals an official’s son

Reflect

Jesus and the marginalised

While it may seem a bit odd to set modern stories of trauma and abuse in the context of the narrative of John’s Gospel, an imaginative engagement with both can, we believe, bring the reader into closer contact with the heart of God. The Bible is a book full of stories of traumatised people, but it is also a book of hope because it tells of how God and his Christ can heal those who were abused and traumatised, individually and collectively.

Throughout John’s Gospel, Jesus repeatedly claimed that he came to make the Father (God) known. He accomplished this not only through the words he spoke about the Father, but also through the way he lived out the Father’s heart. Each word, each look, each silence and each touch were a manifestation of how God thinks and feels. John carefully recorded these stories for us so that we too could encounter Jesus the way his first disciples did.

Jewish culture in Jesus’ day was not too unlike the South Asian culture of our day when it came to attitudes towards women. Far from maintaining the value on all humans as God’s image bearers as portrayed in the first chapters of the Bible, first century Jewish culture (particularly the version promoted by the Pharisees) had adopted a hierarchical, caste-like mentality towards certain segments of the population, as had the Greeks of their time. Those in power used the Scriptures as a tool to justify their superior position to women, cripples, Gentiles and sinners, keeping them on the margins of society.

Jesus’ words and actions were scandalous, jolting both his followers and his opponents with their radical challenge to the culture of his day.

Seen in this context, Jesus’ words and actions were scandalous, jolting both his followers and his opponents with their radical challenge to the culture of his day. Observing this social dynamic opens our eyes to God’s opinion about the mistreatment of any of his beloved image bearers and his activism in raising up the downtrodden. It also gives us ideas for how we might imitate Christ in our current sociocultural context.

As you read the stories of Jesus’ interaction with marginalised men and women in first century Palestine, allow yourself to enter into those encounters. You may find yourself as an eyewitness being shocked and inspired by his unconventional way of doing things, or perhaps you may find yourself as a needy one on the receiving end of his tender conversation and care. Similarly, as you read the stories of traumatised women in the society of our day, allow yourself to see them as Jesus would if they had been among those brought to him for healing and help. As you do, it is our desire that you will encounter the love of God for his wounded daughters as well as his hope-inspiring persistence in restoring them.

Engage

Who was Jesus and how did he define his purpose on earth?

  1. Identify
  1. Interpret

a. Who are some of the people Jesus interacted with in John 1–4:42? In what ways did his approach differ from person to person?

b. Did any of Jesus’ words in John 1–4:42 surprise you? Comfort you? Which ones and why?

  1. Involve
  1. Intercede

a. As you’ve engaged with this week’s portion, are there any compelling questions you are wrestling with?

b. How could you turn them into a conversation with God?