WHEN SHEPHERDS PREY

AUTHOR: VICTORY ATET

We often speak about mental, physical, sexual, and emotional abuse — and rightly so. But rarely do we confront the subject of spiritual abuse. It hides behind sacred texts, flows through the voices of revered leaders, and cloaks itself in devotion and submission. Unlike other forms of abuse, it’s harder to name, harder to prove, and often accepted under the guise of obedience to God. Yet, its wounds run deep — silencing the soul, distorting truth, and enslaving the spirit.

In God's name, His sheep are deceived, exploited, and manipulated by those meant to be shepherds. Everything is woven around the Scriptures, the need to honour the servant of God, and other virtuous ideals stretched to unhealthy extremes.

The sheep begin a journey to the borders of compromise, told that submission to authority is non-negotiable. Mind-bending principles are enforced to enslave the will, leaving no room for dissent — I call this sanctified control. Fallacies blur the line between truth and deception — a lie dressed in the robes of truth. Weak emotions are weaponised, securing dependency on the shepherd rather than on God. The vulnerable cling to their safety nets, filling trauma’s void with the illusion of love. Desperation to feel safe forces them to ignore the bait. Manipulated loyalty becomes the very structure holding this monastery together.

I wish the blind would see.
I wish the deaf would hear.
I wish the oppressed would be delivered.
I wish the deceived would come into the knowledge of God.

Let your light shine, invading every corridor of the mind.

Let your truth sing, restoring doctrine that brings freedom.

Let wisdom dance on the high towers, that all may see and be drawn.