The CCT and Crowd-Sourcing a Network to Care for the Sexually Exploited

Well, it has been a long time since I've had a chance to actually sit down and blog anything on this site, so 'Hello Again', if you are still following. What I have discovered over the past several years is that while it seems like it should be relatively easy, sitting down and making a blog entry takes a good amount of time.  Life is filled with a number of things that have priority over blogging and I won't bore you with the details of them (suffice it to say that family and work obligations are the first two on the list).

This January through May I will have more time to blog, though. The kind folks in La Mirada have extended me a Visiting Research Fellow position at Biola University's Center for Christian Thought. My research this term will be focusing on the impact of sexual exploitation on spiritual formation.  There'll be two parts to this project - one on how it impacts those who consume sexually explicit material, and another on how it impacts those who are used in production of sexual services (such as prostitutes, adult film actresses, and others who are sexually exploited). I will do my best this semester to have weekly posts to keep you updated on these projects and to let you know what else is going on at the CCT. More than likely I will also be giving you some previews of the manuscripts that I am working on, too.

Before things really get going here, I wanted to see if I can ask for a bit of help.  It's come to my attention that there are numerous ministries involved in caring for those who are sexually exploited, ranging from outreach to prostitutes to fighting against human trafficking.  Given this - and in an attempt to not reinvent the wheel - one of my projects will be to put together somr resources for these organizations. We are not quite sure yet, and we're still in the development stage to see what we can offer these organizations. The resources will most likely vary from mental health care or best practices for outreach to preventative/educational materials and faith-based spiritual resources. We are also looking to find ways to do more research on those who are sexually exploited as well so that we can better advocate for public policy to be better informed about those affected.

So, if you are involved in or are aware of an organization that is doing work in this area - either a local or national/global group, or a religious or non-religious - could you send me an e-mail at wiredforintimacy@gmail.com with the Subject: WFI CROWDSOURCE so that we can begin building a database and corresponding with these ministries?  If you are aware of the website, e-mail, or any contact information please include it in the text of the e-mail. As things get going I'll be posting updates. For now, stay warm!!

Peace,
-Bill