CV Ministries National Church Safety and Security Prevention Philosophy
CV Ministries believes that prevention is the key to achieving a safe and secure church or ministry. Prevention goes well beyond preventing shootings, and must include a focus on physical, emotional and relational security and safety for all who are involved with or connected to you and your ministry. We believe in the need to prevent damage to church or ministry property, and in the need to prevent physical, emotional or relational harm to those who attend or work for the church or ministry.
The church has often been criticized for either failing to protect those who attend, or for causing emotional or relational damage. This can happen because the church is either unaware or unconcerned about how it communicates its theological positions that conflict with popular culture, or because at times its attempts to help others ends up hurting them due to a lack of knowledge about how to address issues such as severe mental illness. Tragically, the other reason this occurs is that the church has failed to protect those who are most vulnerable from incidents of sexual abuse.
We believe that in order for ministries or churches to minister most effectively, they must prevent physical, emotional and relational harm from coming to those who attend, serve, are served or are employed by them. This is the heart of church and ministry safety and security.
Our philosophy and approach is built on preventing physical, emotional and relational harm and includes three levels of prevention.
Level 1 Prevention is considered to be Primary Prevention. It involves the most immediate and direct services, and is designed to prevent harm from occurring while people are on your property or at a church, ministry or school event. It seeks to prevent harm that results from building or property issues, verbal confrontations or disruptions, or physical acts of violence (including abductions, sexual assault, shootings, etc.), with a focus on identifying and addressing issues and individuals long before there is opportunity for direct violence to occur.
Level 1 Services (described in detail elsewhere on the website) include the following:
Comprehensive Assessments
Creating a Safety Net Training (verbal de-escalation and addressing mental illness)
Defensive Tactics Training
Comprehensive Verbal De-Escalation Training
Concealed Carry Classes
Training and Developing a Safety and Security Team
Church Security Accreditation
Planning for and Implementing Security Cameras
Level 2 Prevention is considered to be Secondary Prevention. It is of equal importance to Primary Prevention, but is one step removed from direct contact with people while they are on the church, ministry or school property. It is focused on people more than property, and seeks to prevent physical, emotional or relational harm by identifying, assessing, intervening and ministering to those who may be struggling with mental illness, dementia, or addiction as well as those who may be contemplating violence or harm to the church, ministry, or some individual who is involved with them.
Level 2 Services (described in detail elsewhere on the website) include the following:
R.A.D.A.R Training
Staff Assessment Services
Identifying Emotional Problems in Children Training Program
Identifying Emotional Problems in Adolescents Training Program
Maintaining a Strong Relationship with Your Adolescent Training Program
Identifying and Managing the Beginnings of Dementia Training Program
Caring for Your Elderly Parents Training Program
Pastoral Counseling Skills Training
Severe Mental Illness and How to Respond Training
Organizational Development Training
Organizational Development Services
Christian Counseling Services
Level 3 Prevention is considered to be Tertiary Prevention. It is perhaps the most difficult to understand, because while it is the most removed from direct contact with people or situations who can cause immediate near-term disruption or harm, it accomplishes the highest level of prevention and has the potential for the longest lasting benefit. Level 3 Prevention is specifically designed to accomplish longer-term church, ministry and societal transformation and prevent physical and sexual abuse, addiction, incarceration and the negative situations, circumstances and events that prevent individuals, churches and ministries from reaching their fullest potential.
It is likely that as you are reading this section and searching our website and come (or came) across the information about Parenting, Pre-Marital and Marital training you thought something along the lines of “we already do that,” or “it’s not necessary.” Nothing could be further from the truth. Strengthening our families through in-depth marriage building and teaching parenting skills is what is required to move towards preventing the serious societal problems mentioned above. Additionally, while many churches and ministries teach on marriages and parenting, it is frequently not at the level required to achieve prevention of those issues. We have provided clinical services to those who have experienced physical and sexual abuse, the severest addictions, and those who are incarcerated in jails for minor charges and prison for charges up to and including multiple murders. This experience allows us to know how to teach parents and spouses how to prevent these issues in their own families.
Recent research, publications and seminars have identified that the home environment has significant responsibility for either contributing to or causing abuse, addiction, incarceration and the wasting of ministry and life potential. Knowing how to develop and maintain a strong marriage, how to parent effectively, and how to create and maintain a strong, supportive, loving church and ministry culture are all required for effective ministry and societal transformation.
Level 3 Services (described in detail elsewhere on the website) include the following:
R.E.S.P.E.C.T Parental Training Program
Pre-Marital Counseling/Training Program
Marital Training Program
Organizational Development Training
SUMMARY
CV Ministries seeks to prevent physical, emotional and relational harm, and achieve societal transformation through the services we provide. All services have been intentionally designed to meet needs in Levels 1 -3.
We believe that prevention is the key to church safety and security, and churches and ministries need to adopt this bigger picture in order to effectively meet the safety and security needs of their church or organization. We are professionals committed to reaching this goal for you and those to whom you minister.
