The Bible does not minimise rape. Nor should our criminal justice system

“I should avoid criminalising these children unnecessarily and…support their reintegration into society.”

These are the words of a judge sentencing three teenage boys who groomed, lured, then repeatedly raped and terrorised two girls in two separate incidents, filming the assaults and sharing the videos online. The teenagers were given youth rehabilitation orders and walked out of court with ten rape convictions between them.

The lack of a custodial sentence for these boys, who were 13 and 14 at the time of the crime, and the reactions of the victims and their families have sparked outrage.

One of the girls described hearing the judge’s remarks as being like “a rock in my face”. The other girl’s mother has described her daughter as being a “prisoner in her own home”, afraid of bumping into her attacker if she walks down the street.

A heinous crime

So, is the outrage justified? What should happen? The reality is that if an adult had committed this crime, with premeditation, a knife, the degrading comments that accompanied the attack, the filming and sharing of the incident, they would be looking at 15 years minimum in custody.

When the perpetrators are children themselves, you would expect that to be reduced to somewhere between a half and two-thirds of the sentence.

In this case, the judge decided these boys needed help rather than punishment, reflecting UK laws that prioritise children’s welfare above almost everything.

The Bible does not minimise or shy away from telling stories of sexual violence

However, there is the welfare of other children to consider, too. The victims, for starters, who need to know that they have been seen and heard, and that adults in authority will protect them and make things fair.

Then there are other girls in the community whose welfare is potentially at risk with these boys able to move freely, perhaps with a newfound confidence now they have made it through court without serious consequences.

And then there is a generation of children who will see this story and draw conclusions from it.

Minimising violence

Moments like this highlight a culture in which violence against women and girls isn’t taken seriously, where women’s lives and bodies don’t matter. Where the lifelong impact of being raped is considered less concerning than the impact of boys being put into custody.

These boys - and all boys who hear this story - have been effectively told: “You shouldn’t really do that, but don’t worry, we won’t let it affect your future.” It has minimised the severity of what they’ve done and removed the deterrent to reoffending.

These girls - and all the girls who hear this story - have been effectively told: “This shouldn’t have happened, but we mustn’t let the boys’ futures be damaged.” It tells girls that their lives matter less than boys’.

It stands in stark contrast to what we see in the Bible which, against the odds, does not minimise or shy away from telling stories of sexual violence, even when it is perpetrated by biblical ‘heroes’. The rape of Dinah, Hagar, Tamar, the Levite’s Concubine and Bathsheba; none are hidden from God’s view, and He doesn’t hide them from the view of generations to come.

The lifelong impact of being raped is considered less concerning than the impact of boys being put into custody

The Bible is not so concerned with the reputations of the men who perpetrated these crimes that it doesn’t mention their evil acts. God is not more concerned about the reputation of His people, or even Himself, that He sweeps these stories under the carpet. They are told in all their horror, complexity and confusion.

Sometimes, in our anxiety around how to handle these passages, we can be complicit in silencing the voices of these women. It matters that we don’t skip these chapters in our sermon series, that we wrestle with these stories and acknowledge that terrible things can happen in our midst. They tell the one in three women today whose stories have a similar dark chapter that God sees, knows, and cares.

Even when a human justice system can’t be relied upon, God’s justice can.

A broken system

Moments like this highlight the inadequacy of our criminal justice system, too. These boys being ‘let off’ because they are young - when they have chosen to manipulate, threaten, assault and rape girls - highlights the reason so few women report sexual violence. Because what’s the point?

It’s a double whammy of hurt for those who have been abused - not only has something unthinkable been done to these girls, but the system has failed to support them. It’s something we see time and again at Restored - women who have been hurt by the men who were meant to love them, sometimes by the church that was meant to support them, and then also let down by a criminal justice system that minimises or ignores what has happened to them.

We live in a broken world which often doesn’t reflect God’s kingdom. But as God’s people, we must seek to bring His Kingdom here on earth, as it is in heaven. To honour those who bring us their stories of harm, to hold those who perpetrate abuse to account and to create a culture where harm is simply unacceptable.

The Fordingbridge case has been referred for a sentence review; the results of which will demonstrate what is valued in our culture. Likewise, how we treat survivors and those who perpetrate harm in our communities will demonstrate what is valued in ours.