Baptistland: A Memoir of Abuse, Betrayal, and Transformation
“Baptistland is a story of abuse, brokenness, and betrayal, but more than any of these things, it is the story of resilience. With extraordinary grit and at great personal cost, Christa Brown has worked for decades to press for accountability and reform within the Southern Baptist Convention. In the face of vicious opposition and widespread complicity, she persists to this day in calling for truth, demanding follow-through, and pressing forward with unwavering conviction and hard-earned hope.” — Kristin Kobes Du Mez, author of Jesus and John Wayne
“Christa Brown is renowned as a fierce and resilient advocate, someone who has demanded truth and justice from one of the most influential church bodies in the United States…There is vulnerability and courage in these pages.” — Sarah Stankorb, author of Disobedient Women
“Baptistland will make you weep. It will make you angry. It will break your heart, It will open your eyes. Christa Brown is not just a survivor—she is a hero we don’t deserve.” — Karen Swallow Prior, author of The Evangelical Imagination
“Overcomer. This word effectively describes Christa Brown… the most well-known advocate for change in how the SBC deals with sexual abuse. She persisted and triumphed and inspired me. She was ahead of her time.” — Dee Parsons, The Wartburg Watch
“Baptistland is a searing yet inspirational memoir and sorely needed guide to all who try to expose any corrupt institution.” — David Clohessy, former executive director for the Survivors’ Network of those Abused by Priests
” . . . the confessional and sometimes excruciatingly intimate story of Brown’s life trapped in Baptistland, and her harrowing escape.” — Texas Observer
“Christa Brown has long been a crucial voice speaking out against clergy sexual abuse and its systematic coverups within the Southern Baptist Convention. Her beautifully written memoir offers a stunning portrait of how Baptist culture and theology has shaped evangelical children and family life over generations, creating the ‘what happened didn’t happen’ stance embodied by both her childhood church and her family. — R. Marie Griffith, author of Moral Combat
“Baptistland is the story of … what happens in many religious communities when a woman steps forward and uses her voice, her agency, and her life to speak out to bring light to dark places.” — Boz Tchvidjian, BozLaw
“In Baptistland, Christa Brown bravely summons her own experiences of child abuse in her family and church as she stares down the abuse crisis rotting evangelicalism from the inside out. — R.L. Stollar, author of The Kingdom of Children
“Baptistland is a profoundly moving personal account of the impact of sexual abuse, family and church betrayal, and decades-long resistance to attempts by the Southern Baptist Convention to sweep abuse under the rug.” — Susan Shaw, co-author of Surviving God
“Baptistland is the moving story of how Christa Brown broke cycles of intergenerational trauma, helped her fellow abuse survivors, and kept her sense of empathy and truth…” — Rev. Nathan Empsall, Executive Director of Faithful America
This Little Light:
Beyond a Baptist Preacher Predator and His Gang
What do Baptist leaders do about a minister reported to them for child molestation?
Nothing.
Nothing even when another minister knows about the abuse and says so.
Nothing even when the largest statewide Baptist organization in the country concludes there is “substantial evidence” the abuse took place. Nothing even when the man is still working in children’s ministry.
Do they warn people in the pews? No. Do they provide counseling for the victim? No. Do they remove the man from ministry? No.
This is the reality that I encountered in Baptistland when I tried to report the minister who molested and raped me as a kid. It was a reality I could not accept.
This Little Light is the documented true story of my determination to assure that what was done to me would not be done to others.
The decision to write the book did not come easily. Why in the world would I choose to speak publicly about something so unspeakable? In the words of my favorite childhood song, I decided to let “this little light of mine” shine in the hope that it might illumine a path for others and open a gateway for change.
This Little Light not only tells my personal story, but also documents the beginning of activist efforts to bring clergy accountability to Baptistland.
Read what others have said about This Little Light.
Christa Brown 