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Why do male pastors fight so hard to preserve patriarchy?
Why did the largest Protestant denomination in America (the Southern Baptist Convention) just excommunicate churches for ordaining women?
Because without this very strict hierarchy, their power FALLS APART.
š§µ
Why did the largest Protestant denomination in America (the Southern Baptist Convention) just excommunicate churches for ordaining women?
Because without this very strict hierarchy, their power FALLS APART.
š§µ
This is the original umbrella illustration used by Bill Gothard and IBLP, as seen on #ShinyHappyPeople.
But in practice there is another umbrella between Christ and the husbandāthe pastor.
In these circles, the pastor tells the husband what Jesus wants.
But in practice there is another umbrella between Christ and the husbandāthe pastor.
In these circles, the pastor tells the husband what Jesus wants.
The pastor is actually the most powerful because he alone speaks for God.
But there are some very real threats to that power: singleness, divorce, and egalitarianism all have the ability to disrupt this hierarchy.
And thatās why theyāre all vigorously condemned. Hereās how:
But there are some very real threats to that power: singleness, divorce, and egalitarianism all have the ability to disrupt this hierarchy.
And thatās why theyāre all vigorously condemned. Hereās how:
āA Guardian investigation has revealed that a controversial church whose leader has openly expressed the ambition of creating a ātheocracyā in America has accumulated significant influence in the [traditionally āblueā] city of Moscow, Idaho.ā 11/2/21
1/ theguardian.com/world/2021/novā¦
1/ theguardian.com/world/2021/novā¦
2/ If you think you are safe from the theocratic assault on America because you live in a āblueā city, you may want to take a look at what Doug Wilson is doing in Moscow, Idaho.
3/ It can happen fast. This is from 11/5/19. religionnews.com/2019/11/05/douā¦
A thing I worry about w/ #ShinyHappyPeople (& other similar docs) is that we Christians will think āoh wow, look at those weird people over there can you believe it?!ā Because letās be honest, some of that toxic theology was in the churches we grew up in. And often still is.š§µ
Iāve been guilty of treating IBLP as separate from my upbringing, calling them the weird cousins at the family reunion. But my own metaphor sells me out: there IS a family resemblance:
Like, we didnāt use an umbrella, but we learned to submit to all authority (except democrats)
Like, we didnāt use an umbrella, but we learned to submit to all authority (except democrats)
The Pearlsā parenting philosophy is horrifying, but many of us were raised in a less extreme version of the same principle: that little kids (including babies) are inherently sinful & have to have that stubborn, selfish will broken.
Michael Farris used the āparental rightsā rubric 2 oppose the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, ghost wrote Paxtonās brief challenging TFGās loss, mentored Jenna Ellis, & led the ADF, which helped overturn Roe & hosted Amy Coney Barrett. Heās coming 4 the Constitution. 1/
2/ I wrote about how Farris
has enabled the toxic Christian homeschooling environment from which the Duggars emerged & how Trump put Farris on his 1776 advisory board. Amy Coney Barrett spoke at the ADF (which he led until recently) 5X. #ShinyHappyPeople buckscountybeacon.com/2023/06/christā¦
has enabled the toxic Christian homeschooling environment from which the Duggars emerged & how Trump put Farris on his 1776 advisory board. Amy Coney Barrett spoke at the ADF (which he led until recently) 5X. #ShinyHappyPeople buckscountybeacon.com/2023/06/christā¦
3/ The public deserves to know the identity of the āparental rightsā puppeteers (the people behind the current, pulling strings), as well as their agenda. Christian homeschooling leader Michael Farris is such a puppeteer. Here is his agenda:
The Bartons are dominionists and they collaborate with the so-called āMoms for Libertyā organization. Dominionists believe they have a mandate from God to control all aspects of government & culture. Moms 4 Liberty = Moms 4 Christofascism. 1/
As I warned here, Moms 4 Liberty is in cahoots w/ the Bartons & with the āparental rightsā Christian homeschooling crowd that opposes the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child & mandatory child abuse reporting laws. #ShinyHappyPeople #Christofascism 2/ buckscountybeacon.com/2023/06/christā¦
Moms 4 Liberty co-founder Bridget Ziegler works for the Leadership Institute founded by Council for National Policy (CNP) member Morton Blackwell. The CNP is an umbrella & strategy group for the Christian Right & wealthy financiers. 3/
Hi new friends! Thanks for joining conversation here, typically re:
-survivor care & abuse in churches
-critical analysis of ābiblicalā family life teaching & high control religion
-advocacy for children
-OCD/scrupulosity
-storytelling Scripture
#amquerying #amwriting ā¬ļøš§µ
-survivor care & abuse in churches
-critical analysis of ābiblicalā family life teaching & high control religion
-advocacy for children
-OCD/scrupulosity
-storytelling Scripture
#amquerying #amwriting ā¬ļøš§µ
#amquerying my novel THE DAUGHTER:
SPEAK+#shinyhappypeople: Stay-at-home-daughter Hope grapples w/religious OCD, forbidden ministry ambitions, & web of abuse cultivated by her Christian dominionist community as she fights to find the self she was always taught to put to death.
SPEAK+#shinyhappypeople: Stay-at-home-daughter Hope grapples w/religious OCD, forbidden ministry ambitions, & web of abuse cultivated by her Christian dominionist community as she fights to find the self she was always taught to put to death.
#amwriting:
-#greatparentingrescue-esque non-fiction book critically analyzing theological/sociological influences on "biblical" family life/parenting ideology.
-MG fantasy: Hobbitish hedgehogs & ornery feline steeds save fairyland from moths that steal all the animals' tears.
-#greatparentingrescue-esque non-fiction book critically analyzing theological/sociological influences on "biblical" family life/parenting ideology.
-MG fantasy: Hobbitish hedgehogs & ornery feline steeds save fairyland from moths that steal all the animals' tears.
The documentary makers of #ShinyHappyPeople did NOT have a responsibility to say, "not all Christians are like this."
That was not their responsibility.
That is OUR responsibility, to show by our actions and by the way we respond to the victims in this docuseries.
That was not their responsibility.
That is OUR responsibility, to show by our actions and by the way we respond to the victims in this docuseries.
I'm hearing so many criticize, saying, "They didn't do a good job of distinguishing IBLP from the rest of evangelicalism."
But that wasn't their job.
We didn't ask the movie Spotlight to explain "not all Catholics."
But that wasn't their job.
We didn't ask the movie Spotlight to explain "not all Catholics."
No, we watched Spotlight, and then we asked the Catholic church to do the right thing.
In the same way, the proper response by Christians to Shiny Happy People should be to disavow the teachings that enable abuse that are rampant in evangelicalism, and to support victims.
In the same way, the proper response by Christians to Shiny Happy People should be to disavow the teachings that enable abuse that are rampant in evangelicalism, and to support victims.
Want to know just how much the toxic ideology from #ShinyHappyPeople (Bill Gothard, Duggars, IBLP, etc.) infiltrated mainstream evangelicalism?
This true story takes place at one of the largest Southern Baptist churches in the world and itās called Sex, Supper and Submissionā¦
This true story takes place at one of the largest Southern Baptist churches in the world and itās called Sex, Supper and Submissionā¦
During my first two years in seminary I worked at a 45,000 member SBC church in the Dallas area.
A few months after we got married, my wife, Amy, and I attended a class for newly married couples at the church.
It was called After You Say I Do.
A few months after we got married, my wife, Amy, and I attended a class for newly married couples at the church.
It was called After You Say I Do.
Each week we studied a topic intended to help us grow in our marriage. One week the theme was āWomenās Roles.ā
I remember sitting in that room like it was yesterday. The teacher walked into the room, strode up to the whiteboard, and wrote:
SEX
SUPPER
SUBMISSION
I remember sitting in that room like it was yesterday. The teacher walked into the room, strode up to the whiteboard, and wrote:
SEX
SUPPER
SUBMISSION
Digging deeper into parenting ideas exposed in #shinyhappypeople & came across old transcript of Mother's Panel talk given at IBLP Knoxville conf.
I want to spotlight the horrible ideology that supports IBLP abuse & is a kernel of broader Xian parenting teaching in longš§µā¬ļø
I want to spotlight the horrible ideology that supports IBLP abuse & is a kernel of broader Xian parenting teaching in longš§µā¬ļø
CW: abuse
You can access the full transcript here, about halfway down, after an interesting discussion about ways Gothard's "Character First" curricula was taught at public schools & implemented via "Cities of Character" program by Sarah Palin & others. democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboarā¦
You can access the full transcript here, about halfway down, after an interesting discussion about ways Gothard's "Character First" curricula was taught at public schools & implemented via "Cities of Character" program by Sarah Palin & others. democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboarā¦
Things to note: panel includes four women & one man who describe their large families: 9 children, 6 children, 8 children & 5 + *we work w/a lot of other children*
Unsurprisingly, all panelists are exhorters/prophets, a spiritualized term enabling them to tell others what to do
Unsurprisingly, all panelists are exhorters/prophets, a spiritualized term enabling them to tell others what to do
I'm back for Part 3 on what #ShinyHappyPeople has to do with Adventism, and in this part I'll talk specifically about how Adventists, Bill Gothard, and homeschooling intersect. If you missed the first two parts, here you go: 1/20
First we need to talk about Raymond Moore and his wife Dorothy Moore, a Seventh-day Adventist couple whose interest in homeschooling began as they were raising their 9 children. Dorothy felt children were sent to school too young and Raymond agreed. 2/20 curate.nd.edu/downloads/7h14ā¦
Raymond Moore was working for the U.S. Department of Education but resigned in 1967 to pursue research to support his theory that "schooling of any sort was patently detrimental to young children." 3/20
I'm on my lunch break and back for Part 2 of the Seventh-day Adventist connection to/endorsement of Bill Gothard's teachings, brought to you by my weekend viewing of #ShinyHappyPeople. If you haven't read Part 1 of my findings, that is here 1/13:
So, as I mentioned in Part 1, by 1974 Gothard's popularity within Adventism was enough that the Review & Herald editors wrote a two-part series addressing his teachings. Their analysis listed both pros and cons to his message. 2/13
The articles are lengthy so I'll just pull some highlights from each one. In Part 1, the editors state they have never attended a Gothard seminar themselves nor have they met him, but they've talked with Adventists who have and they've read some reports about the seminars. 3/13
If, like me, you were raised #Adventist and watching the docuseries #ShinyHappyPeople struck a familiar cord with you, there's a reason. š§µ 1/12
If you haven't watched #ShinyHappyPeople yet, I recommend it. It's a well done docuseries on Amazon Prime about the Duggar Family and Bill Gothard and his Institute in Basic Life Principles (IBLP). 2/12
I was born and raised in the Michigan Conference of Seventh-day Adventists which is known as one of the most conservative conferences in Adventism. And hearing the testimonies in #ShinyHappyPeople from people who survived Gothard's orbit reminded me so much of my upbringing. 3/12
When I write about problems w/ābiblicalā parenting teaching, there are usually a few parents who reply w/regret.
They believed various āexpertsā & now are left w/damaged relationships & paralyzing shame.
If you recognize your own parenting practices in #shinyhappypeopleā¦š§µ
They believed various āexpertsā & now are left w/damaged relationships & paralyzing shame.
If you recognize your own parenting practices in #shinyhappypeopleā¦š§µ
ā¦and are feeling defensiveness, grief, anger, shame, or other distressing emotions, that makes sense.
Abusive, high control religious environments victimize everyone, & deceived parents are both victims & victimizers.
You can get help too.
Abusive, high control religious environments victimize everyone, & deceived parents are both victims & victimizers.
You can get help too.
Thereās probably a reason you were drawn to such teaching in the first place & now is a good time to get curious about that.
Most control/behavior modification based Christian frameworks reject therapy or advocate for nouthetic counseling.
It doesnāt have to be that way.
Most control/behavior modification based Christian frameworks reject therapy or advocate for nouthetic counseling.
It doesnāt have to be that way.
Brace yourselves... It's taken 3 days to get to the point where I can speak of #ShinyHappyPeople without developing hives. As @BethMooreLPM suggests, I'll try to use "ladylike" words, but here are the 4 excerpts sitting heavy in the gut of this spiritual/sexual abuse survivor. š§µ
Note: Iām not trying to attack people who embrace these stances. I'm attempting to explain how these 4 points can be bludgeons in the hands of believers and not yield the blessings vaunted by IBLP ideology. +
Picture #1 ā āWhy does God allow sexual abuse?ā +
Reminded today of @DrumstaRebekahās excellent article spotlighting signs of spiritual abuse in family life.
The instaobedience on display in #shinyhappypeople is esp conducive to abuse b/c it has no concept of boundaries, autonomy or individuation š§µrebekahdrumsta.com/blog/signs-of-ā¦
The instaobedience on display in #shinyhappypeople is esp conducive to abuse b/c it has no concept of boundaries, autonomy or individuation š§µrebekahdrumsta.com/blog/signs-of-ā¦
Screenshots from the article, the entirety of which is worth reading, that highlight what you see when you see compliant teens whose desires magically align w/parental wishes.
Teens in these movements have been trained since infancy to cheerfully obey right away all the way,
so they by necessity accept that parental wishes are not only Godās will but also their own wishes.
so they by necessity accept that parental wishes are not only Godās will but also their own wishes.
Watched #ShinyHappyPeople. Itās worth checking out, if you havenāt already.
Plenty has already been said about the authoritarianism and subjugation of people we see within that flavor of Christianity.
Plenty has already been said about the authoritarianism and subjugation of people we see within that flavor of Christianity.
I would only add to the conversation that NONE OF THAT WAS SURPRISING to me, given what I know about *another* Duggar.
Do you know John W. Duggar, great uncle of Jim Bob Duggar?
Let me introduce you to him.
Let me introduce you to him.
š§µ Image Repair Analysis of the @iblp response to the documentary #ShinyHappyPeople
Here is a link to their statement
iblp.org/a-statement-onā¦
I'm going to use screenshots this time, as IBLP's statement is more verbose.
Here is a link to their statement
iblp.org/a-statement-onā¦
I'm going to use screenshots this time, as IBLP's statement is more verbose.
If you read Jim Bob Duggar's statement, you will notice a similarity in structure and verbiage.
Both of them lead off with DARVO. IBLP is slightly more emphatic with it.
This is not only DARVO, but a backhanded TRANSCENDENCE.
How so?
Both of them lead off with DARVO. IBLP is slightly more emphatic with it.
This is not only DARVO, but a backhanded TRANSCENDENCE.
How so?
By categorizing the documentary as "a reflection of today's culture", they are aligning the victims with the world and themselves with God.
So it would be fair to call this DARVO via TRANSCENDENCE. (@jdahlmd we have another "winner" here.)
So it would be fair to call this DARVO via TRANSCENDENCE. (@jdahlmd we have another "winner" here.)
š§µImage Repair Analysis of Jim Bob Duggar's response to the documentary #ShinyHappyPeople
"The recent ādocumentaryā that talks about our family is sad because in it we see the media and those with ill intentions hurting people we love."
They are leading off with an ATTACK which is part of a DARVO--Deny, Attack, Reverse Victim and Offender--strategy.
They are leading off with an ATTACK which is part of a DARVO--Deny, Attack, Reverse Victim and Offender--strategy.
They are also GASLIGHTING, as the DARVO comes with a presentation of a set of, as Kellyanne Conway would call them, "alternative facts".
Fact is, some of Jim Bob's children and friends are telling their side of the story ON THEIR OWN FREE WILL.
Fact is, some of Jim Bob's children and friends are telling their side of the story ON THEIR OWN FREE WILL.
