The Jesus Party youth outreach has worked diligently through the years to promote a violence-free society.

The month of October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Here at our children’s ministry, we break it down to the simplest form so the youngest in attendance can understand. Domestic violence is an act of violence that takes place in the home.

The act of hitting one another is always unacceptable, whether it be between spouses who experience high levels of stress, or even siblings who are having difficulty learning to share a toy.

Our goal in this ministry is to teach that men, women and children are made in the image of God and should be treated with the utmost respect.

Violence in all its forms should be condemned.

What makes domestic violence so bizarre is that it takes place in the surroundings of what should be the safest place on Earth: your home. The perpetrators or victims are the ones who are supposed to be the nearest and dearest. It’s one thing to get mugged by some thug in the park, or robbed on the way to the store, or even pushed around by a bully in the school yard, but to be victimized in your own home is just deplorable.

The Rev. Douglas Taylor, Lewiston