At what point would you intervene, if at all.

[LimeSlice]

Just as an aside... it disturbs me thinking about what "heavy book" one would find in a Church... only 2 spring to mind and neither I would think, should be disrespected by being used to abuse a child.

[lady_neon]

Limeslice it was a children's book (not heavy like an old bible). A4 size and about 3/4 inch thick. Nonetheless, it was a book :|

[Rouge]

I'm almost shaking reading this.

I would have said something.

Why do we say nothing? Please don't think I'm having a go at you here, but we really need to drop the mentality of not causing embarrassment by biting our tongues. Not ok. Turning a blind eye never helped anyone. Ever.

Would I have gone troppo? Absolutely not. I probably would have grabbed the book mid air and said hey, we're in church they are just as welcome as we are. Then I probably would have went to the leader of the church and talked about getting some help for them. Not to shame them but to help them. People don't openly parent their kids this way because they are monsters. It's because they don't have the tools. And yes some people are naive. But I have seen people like this grow and change with a little kindness and education. Saying nothing and flying off your handle at ignorance are equally as unhelpful.

Always do something. Just be wise about it.