What you write here is excruciating. The abuse you experienced and witnessed was horrific. But it was not the result of Christianity; it was pathological religious extremism. There are many Christian communities that are healthy and nurturing. The United Church of Canada, for example, is famous for its focus on social justice and its rejection of all forms of violence. There are many forms of every major religion. I am Jewish, and I choose to align myself with a movement that reflects my liberal values. I have read about some Jewish communities that practice child abuse and even commit murder (see Deborah Feldman’s memoir Unorthodox: the Scandalous Rejection of My Hasidic Roots). That doesn’t mean that Judaism is harmful to children; it just means that extremists will twist any belief system to reflect their depravity and their claims of religious freedom are bogus.