Alisa Williams Profile picture
Jun 6, 2023 20 tweets 9 min read Read on X
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/7h14… ImageImageImage
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 Image
They had created the Moore Foundation in 1961 and Raymond also co-founded the Hewitt Research Foundation in 1963 with Carl Hewitt, but after Raymond's resignation from the government, things really started moving. 4/20 greathomeschoolconventions.com/blog/homeschoo… ImageImage
By 1972, Raymond Moore's teachings had been picked up by Harper's and a book deal with Reader's Digest soon followed. His book is credited with launching the modern homeschooling movement in the United States. 5/20 mooreacademy.org/about/dr_raymo… Image
According to this 1974 Gleaner article, the Hewitt Research Foundation was an Adventist organization "organized primarily to help the Church be effective and efficient" before it became a worldwide influence. 6/20 documents.adventistarchives.org/Periodicals/NP… Image
The Gleaner article quotes Moore: "It is not that we are so scholarly or bright," remarks Raymond Moore, the Foundation president. "We simply enjoy a great advantage by basing much of our research on God's Word; and He blesses." 7/20 Image
Though "legally independent" from the Adventist Church, the Hewitt Research Foundation trustees were "leading Adventist laymen and several General and Union Conference officers" including Neal Wilson (Ted Wilson's father) who, at the time, was a GC VP. 8/20 Image
The article concludes by remarking that "More than 50 Hewitt articles and monographs have been published by popular and professional presses such as Reader's Digest, Harpers, Childhood Education and the Phi Delta Kappan carrying Bible-based messages." 9/20 Image
In 1984, Raymond Moore did an interview w/ Ministry Magazine. The article is lengthy, but I'll highlight a few parts. To start, the interviewer points out that "James Dobson, Bill Gothard, and Tim LaHaye promote your books in their religious arenas." 10/20 documents.adventistarchives.org/Periodicals/MI… Image
Moore told the interviewer: "Our goal is to restore the family and create fertile soil for the gospel. And we are trying to keep good parents out of jail!" 11/20 Image
He then added: "There are occasional attempts by school or social department officials and teacher unions to harass parents who teach their children in home schools." But, "we are winning nearly all of the few [cases] that get to court." 12/20 ImageImage
He states that he came to the realization that humanism "has burned the nation and virtually cauterized God out of the schools." 13/20 ImageImage
He adds: "Mothers today seek jobs because of the emptiness in their homes when children have gone to school early." But when they learn the "myth" of school, they dedicate themselves to managing finances more carefully so they can stay home. 🙃 14/20 Image
Moore states several purported benefits of homeschooling then adds, "This is the main reason, Bill Gothard tells me, that he has set out to make home education the center of his ministry." 👀 15/20 Image
When asked if he sees a large movement toward homeschooling, Moore replied, "Yes, in two areas: First, Bill Gothard observes that home education is already the educational movement of the decade, with thousands of new home schoolers a year." 👀 16/20 Image
The whole of this interview is a JOURNEY & worth the read, but the takeaway of this thread is Moore laid the groundwork for a massive homeschooling movement that was largely untouchable by government oversight and he had a profound impact on James Dobson and Bill Gothard. 17/20
In 1984, the same year as Raymond Moore's interview, and decades after he had launched the American homeschool movement, Bill Gothard started his own "Christian home education program." 18/20 atii.org Image
Considering Moore's own views on education, the home, and a mother's place, combined w/ his relationships w/ Dobson & Gothard, it's clear Gothard's own homeschooling program was based on the foundation Moore built and benefited from Moore's legal advocacy for homeschoolers. 19/20
And there you have it. A few reasons why #ShinyHappyPeople might resonate if you grew up conservative Adventist like I did. 20/20

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Jun 6, 2023
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
Read 14 tweets
Jun 6, 2023
If, like me, you were raised #Adventist and watching the docuseries #ShinyHappyPeople struck a familiar cord with you, there's a reason. 🧵 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
Read 13 tweets
Nov 23, 2021
One of the problems that comes along with videos like the one making the rounds right now, where an #Adventist pastor takes it upon himself to say the quiet, shadowy, dirty parts of the Adventist Church out loud… (1/15)
Is that inevitably, one of the biggest, loudest (and I suppose I should add well meaning though it doesn’t feel that way) responses is something along the lines of… (2/15)
“I’m an Adventist and he /his beliefs don’t represent me!” “I’m an Adventist and I disagree with him! What he said is vile!” “That pastor doesn’t speak for the official church, here’s a 28-point lecture on what the church officially believes!” (3/15)
Read 16 tweets
Jan 10, 2021
Ted Wilson is not stupid. So he must know that when he refuses to directly address the Capitol attack and instead says insipid things like this, it will be seen as affirmation by the Adventists who took part in/supported the attack on the Capitol, right?
Let's break it down. White supremacist Adventists (and yeah, there are a lot of those), can easily read this as Satan's obstacles = bicycle barricades/Capitol police/democrats, but the GC president is here, encouraging them to hold fast to their faith & stay strong. How nice.
And before some of you start wailing that that "CLEARLY" wasn't the intent of his tweet, I'll say intent has very little to do with interpretation, and how do any of us know his intent anyway when he has been COMPLETELY SILENT about Wednesday's attack?
Read 12 tweets
Jul 25, 2020
*taps mic* Hello, Adventist Twitter, and welcome to the inaugural Adventist storytime. I invite you to gather ‘round, for today we will be learning about self-proclaimed prophet and attempted murderer, Margaret Matilda Wright Rowen. 1/27
The year was 1916. The place? Southern California (you know how those California Adventists be). 2/27
Our dear Sister Ellen G. White, prophetess extraordinaire, has been dead less than one year when 35-year-old Margaret Rowen enters stage left. I will henceforth call her Mags, because I’m telling the story, and I want to. 3/27
Read 27 tweets
Oct 15, 2019
I wouldn’t mind all the energy spent on lectures about the evils of caffeine if the Adventist Church spent the same energy (or any energy, really) discussing things like racism and sexism that are killing POC and women faster and at much higher rates than a cup of coffee #GCAC19
Where are the worship thoughts about dismantling systemic racism, starting right here in our church? Where are the lectures about how the church should respond to and care for survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault? #GCAC19
If you don’t want us to drink caffeine, fine. But why hasn’t our health message been expanded to include the health threats we’re now more aware of as 21st century Adventists? #GCAC19
Read 4 tweets

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