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Articles about how Bill Gothard mishandles the Bible to support his legalistic viewpoint.

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Stories and accounts of the destruction caused by the teachings of Bill Gothard.

Tag Archives: false-teaching

Their Day in Court: Part Two

22 February 2019, 10:00

KariU

0

  This is part two of a three-part series. Part OnePart Three Motion for Sanctions: Jane Doe IV Jane Doe IV was next on the stand, and she walked up with just as much confidence as Emily, and with a determined expression on her face. Jane Doe IV has since outed herself to some friends and […]

An ATI Education, Final Chapter: Guilty Silence

4 January 2016, 14:55

Sara Jones

168

Was a woman raped? Don’t jump to her defense—God might hold her just as guilty as her attacker. In Wisdom Booklet 36, Gothard discusses the legal penalties for kidnapping, assault, battery, and rape. He writes: “God has established some very strict guidelines of responsibility for a woman who is attacked. She is to cry out for […]

An ATI Education, Chapter 5: We the People Under Authority

23 December 2015, 06:00

Sara Jones

49

Rejecting your God-given authority doesn’t just affect your personal life. It can destroy a whole nation. I mean, just look at the French Revolution! In Wisdom Booklet 18, Gothard spends several pages discussing the the 18th century French Revolution. He chose as his “chief cause” the fact that many intellectuals of the day had rejected […]

An ATI Education, Chapter 4: The Law of Grace

17 December 2015, 14:18

Sara Jones

69

“If a woman doesn’t cry out when she’s raped, God holds her equally guilty with her attacker.” Bill Gothard states this outright in Wisdom Booklet 36; hundreds of people, most of them well-meaning Christians, read and accepted it. I was one of them. I wrote this series for Recovering Grace to give a glimpse into the long, […]

An ATI Education, Chapter 3: Thou Shalt Not Trap the Eye

14 December 2015, 12:15

Sara Jones

47

“Ye are the light of the world; a city that is set on a hill cannot be hid.” According to Bill Gothard, this verse clearly directs women to avoid clothing with “eye traps” that might attract a man’s lustful attention.  As a quick recap, my previous articles explained: 1. Bill Gothard set himself up as the final authority […]

An ATI Education, Chapter 1: Under the Umbrella

15 October 2015, 06:00

Sara Jones

46

How do we grow in wisdom and character? How are we protected from temptation? How does God give us direction for our lives? Say it with me, ye thousands of Gothard’s alumni: “By staying under authority.” Authority is the foundational principle of Gothard’s worldview. “Our faith multiplies as we see how God speaks to us […]

An ATI Education: Introduction

12 October 2015, 06:00

Sara Jones

34

If a woman doesn’t cry out when she’s raped, God holds her equally guilty with her attacker. This biblical mandate is familiar to every student and parent who went through Bill Gothard’s Wisdom Booklet #36. Reading it as a bald statement like that, it’s hard to believe that a thinking Christian would admit to believing […]

Stolen Dreams

24 August 2015, 07:14

Sara Jones

46

Through IBLP and his “homeschool” program (the Advanced Training Institute), Bill Gothard stifled hundreds of dreams in the name of godly living. As the first wave of apprenticeship students reached teenager-hood beginning in the 1990s, all of us naturally needed to explore and develop our own gifts. But as we sat through Gothard’s sessions in […]

What Sexual Abuse Counseling Can Do to Help You

12 June 2015, 19:59

Moderator

151

Christians and psychotherapy haven’t always had the best relationship. Growing up as I did, adjacent to cultural fundamentalists, I absorbed the following dominant assumptions: You don’t need counseling if you have Jesus. Counselors disapprove of homeschooling and Christianity and might want to take you away from your parents. The only good counselor is a Christian […]

Set Free from Silence

30 May 2015, 06:00

Moderator

108

I’ve been seeing a lot of news lately about the Duggars.  Comments on the stories run along the lines of, “I bet the victims didn’t receive counseling!  I bet they were just told to wear longer skirts. The culture of ATI [Advanced Training Institute] created an atmosphere of abuse.” I’ve decided to jump on the […]