Can Empowering Love Heal Trauma?
By Helene Russell
Oord’s view of God as amipotent, empowering love, offers healing for those suffering from psychological trauma.
God’s Amipotence, not Omnipotence, is the buzzword for Oord’s latest work in critical and constructive theology. He challenges the doctrine that God holds all the power and controls human life, either by intervening at certain times, or by directing all events, all the time. In substituting “Ami” which indicates the importance of love, for the classical Omni (all), he posits that Christianity believes in a God that is the superlative source of uncontrolling love, that is Amipotent.
With this creative neologism Oord replaces the problematic claims of omnipotence with the assertion that the most fundamental claim about God is God’s love. Even God’s power is about God’s love. God’s power is relational and acts to empower with us, not over us. Godly love is immensely powerful, but it is not a power that is wielded in the way that omnipotent power is exercised. Rather, God’s power is known in the way that love is relationally powerful–through inspiring and working with others toward inclusive well-being.
Oord defines love as the quality of relationship that consciously and intentionally promotes and empowers well-being for self, other and the whole. Oord sees love as grounded upon God, such that all love holds within it the powerful love of God which draws us toward enacting justice and shalom.[1] This reminds me of Soren Kierkegaard’s emphasis on love using the term “upbuilding” as a description of God’s Love. God’s love upbuilds human love from a foundation of love that is already present within persons.[2] Oord’s theology also holds that all humans deserve to be loved and are capable of loving. Thus, God’s love stirs and rekindles human capacity for love of neighbor and for proper self-love. God empowers us, building up our power to love and to be loved.
This shift from viewing God as having total control over all beings, to experiencing God as empowering us with love, may be helpful for my work toward a theology for trauma survivors. This current essay explores the ways that Oord’s view of God as amipotent might contribute to reinterpreting Christian theology in a way that is healing and empowering for those suffering from Post Trauma Stress Disorder and other trauma injuries.
Trauma is experienced in many ways. Different persons process pain and harm differently according to various factors, such as past experience, quality and number of resources, general emotional make-up, cultural contexts. Yet when experiences are so horrible and distinct from ordinary experience that they overwhelm the usual way of processing experience and information, there is no way to integrate them. These injuries, identified as trauma injury, including PTDS, continue to wound a person long after the initial event, making it particularly challenging to overcome the damage. Symptoms include anxiety, feeling overwhelmed and confused, learned helplessness, self-blame, trouble sleeping, avoidant behaviors, feeling detached from one’s own body, isolated from friends and family, shame and self-blame, feelings of helplessness, loss of internal and external awareness of one’s body, absence of clear memory of distressing event(s), and feeling stuck and overwhelmed, numbness among others. [3]
When religious survivors of trauma hold to an omnipotent God, they might feel that God has deserted them or is punishing them. Survivors ask: why did the all-powerful God allow this to happen? And why did God not stop the trauma and protect me? Or has God abandoned me or turned against me? These experiences reinforce the loss of agency, loneliness, and a sense of helplessness, and can feel like a continuation of the trauma and abuse, resulting in more anger, confusion, and feelings of abandonment. A person is more likely to give up, feeling like they deserved the abuse/harm, or that they are predestined to suffer. These beliefs might be the result of their own embedded theological assumptions or from cultural norms. Clearly such views are not helpful for healing and can negatively impede healing and reinforce the damage of traumatic injuries, especially learned helplessness.
Could Oord’s theology be a healing resource for religious persons suffering from psychological trauma? How might his view of God’s love as empowering action with us, and God’s power as primarily loving and relational, offer a healing understanding of God as one who is always present with us, even in the trauma, and always bidding us toward well-being and wholeness?
To address this question, I focus on four aspects of psychological trauma injury that are particularly resistant to healing: (1) shame, internalizing blame and feeling responsible,
(2) absence of clear memory of distressing event(s) resulting in alienation from one’s self, including feeling out of conscious control of one’s experience and awareness of one’s body, (3) feelings of helplessness, and (4) feeling stuck, overwhelmed, and unable to make decisions or take effective action.[4] I focus on positive approaches to healing that correspond with each of these four aspects of trauma injury. Recovery takes the form of promoting self-worth and confidence, re-integrating memories, reclaiming a sense of embodiment, and finally, regaining agency and action.
In addition, trauma injury impacts religious persons in specific ways. It is likely to shake the foundations of their faith in God, both in terms of God’s love and care, and their faith in God as a powerful protector. It can cause devastating disruptions in their worldview and participation in their faith community, including loss of the support of family and other significant relationships. I explore the ways that Oord’s view of God as amipotent rather Omnipotent might be good news specifically for religious persons suffering from trauma injuries within each section.
Shame
Victims of trauma often blame themselves for the harm they experienced. Perhaps they froze during the trauma, or were not strong enough to fight, or they identified with the attacker, or believed that they deserved the harm. Feeling ashamed follows. Unfortunately, these feelings can be reinforced by authority figures and the legal system. This is particularly noticeable in religious trauma, especially if a victim holds to a view of God that is omnipotent.
Oord’s theology is beneficial in speaking to shame and self-blame. By explicitly rejecting an angry, vengeful, and all-powerful God, Oord undercuts the harmful images of God that some Christians have espoused. His rejection of Omnipotence for God as Amipotent works to prevent the re-traumatizing that more traditional theologies and liturgies might cause.
This alternative understanding of God’s power is particularly helpful for persons whose embedded theological beliefs align with the traditional view of an omnipotent God. What glad news it may be to hear that God is not punishing one through the trauma injury since blame and punishment are not emphasized, divine love is. This can help trauma sufferers to feel far less culpable and more empowered on their healing journey.
Alienation from Oneself
Trauma events follow an unusual path into the brain and are processed at a subcortical (subconscious) level; traumatic wounding is processed before a person is consciously aware. This can result in distorted memories of the event, leading to a feeling of alienation from one’s own mind and body, which can result in dissociation and numbness. For example, a survivor becomes unaware of where their limbs are in space which can result in falls or seemingly “clumsy” movements. In addition to these disruptions of proprioception, interoception (awareness of internal feelings, such as growling stomach, or aching knee) is also compromised, sometimes masking injuries and deepening the sense of dissociation. One feels other to oneself.
For religious persons, these physiological responses to trauma may be interpreted as an external power, such as an omnipotent God, controlling the situation, punishing and abandoning the victim.
However, Oord presents an alternative view of God as an amipotent God who never leaves our side, staying with us empathically through thick, thin, and even through dissociative events, such as trauma. This assurance can be of great comfort and help to counteract the experience of feeling lost, abandoned and especially feeling ‘other’ to oneself. This view holds that God never abandons us, remaining with us at every step of recovery, comforting, understanding, and influencing us toward the best possible outcome for us and for all surrounding us. God is also present with all entities involved. This detail might seem insignificant but consider the implication here—God is always working with all circumstances surrounding us toward greater well-being. In other words, God is not merely helping the individual heal, but also working with the whole situation, and all that is involved toward healing and empowerment.
Helplessness and Inaction
The third and fourth issues feed into each other. Since survivors were unable to exert control or decisiveness in avoiding the harmful event itself, and in processing it, feelings of helplessness and being out of control permeate their minds, often continuing long into the future. This sense of learned helplessness erodes their confidence in themselves as capable of protecting and fighting for their own safety and well-being. Their experience of not being able to defend themselves successfully in the trauma encounter often leads to a lack of agency and loss of faith in their ability to act effectively. As a result they feel trapped, unable to make decisions and unable to take positive steps forward.
Oord’s understanding of God as empowering love can be a catalyst for the survivor to overcome feelings of helplessness and take effective action. Divine empowering love reminds survivors of their natural resilience and ability. God does not fix the problem for us (which sometimes, I would prefer), but knowing us better than we know ourselves, bids us toward decisive and successful action. God’s power not only loves (and not controls) us, but also lures our own power to emerge. Returning to Kierkegaard for a moment, God’s love “builds up” from the foundation of love that is already present. Similarly for Oord, God’s powerful love upbuilds our resilient nature toward reclaiming our own power.
In summation, by framing God’s power as the power of love, Oord’s theology successfully empowers those suffering from the shame, dissociation, anxiety, and helplessness experienced during a traumatic event as well as its emotional aftermath. His creative term, amipotent, not only better captures the understanding of God’s relationship with God’s people told in the Biblical witness, it also effectively addresses each of the four aftereffects of trauma highlighted in this essay. By arguing that Divine Reality is at its essence, loving and empowering, I conclude that Oord’s theology is indeed a positive step toward healing for those suffering from these symptoms of psychological Trauma.
Bio: Helene T. Russell is Associate Professor of Theology at Christian Theological Seminary in Indianapolis, IN. She earned her PhD from Claremont Graduate School under Marjorie Suchocki. Her published works include Creating Women’s Theology, Kierkegaard and Irigaray, and other articles on Augustine, Kierkegaard, and process theology. She teaches Yoga and loves her green cheeked conure, Tuki.
OORD’S DRABBLE* RESPONSE
Helene Russell explores the healing power of amipotence, especially for those suffering in various ways. She notes that belief in an omnipotent God often leads trauma survivors to feel abandoned or punished, deepening their wounds. In contrast, amipotence offers a more compassionate alternative—one that fosters healing rather than intensifying pain. It helps overcome shame and alienation by emphasizing cooperation between God and the survivor. Healing becomes a shared process, not a passive one. I’m deeply encouraged by Helene’s insight that amipotence provides a meaningful path forward for those coping with psychological trauma and seeking restoration through divine partnership.
For more on Oord’s view of God’s power in the face of trauma, see this article.
* A drabble is an essay exactly 100 words in length.
[1] https://youtu.be/UdI6IeIfOiU (minute 18 forward)
[2] Soren Kierkegaard, Works of Love: (Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1995).
[3] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK207191/ and https://www.army.mil/article/241611/it_really_wasnt_your_fault_how_understanding_the_brains_response_to_trauma_can_lessen_victim_blaming_and_self_blame#:~:text=Survivors%20own%20lack%20of%20knowledge,victim%20blaming%2C”%20Wilson%20said.
[4] Bessel van der Kolk, The Body Keeps the Score: (New York: Penguin Books, 2015), 207, chapter 4.