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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.

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Why We Care About Sexual Abuse

4 April 2013, 06:00

Beverly

April is national Sexual Assault Awareness Month. Last year Recovering Grace dedicated the month of April to bringing these stories of darkness into the light, and we are doing so again this year. Why do we choose to focus our attention on this emotionally disturbing, heart-wrenching subject? It takes only a glance at today’s news […]

Sonic Bloom: Untruth With An Agenda

21 March 2013, 06:00

Danielle Klueber

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The author, other IBLP staff members and directors, and Bill Gothard in the Indianapolis South Campus green house

There is no denying that Bill Gothard has a persuasive way of presenting “newfound” products, ideas, and beliefs. Many trust that he is truthful in these things. They assume, as I did, that he would never purposefully deceive. During my time with IBLP (the Institute in Basic Life Principles) I was witness to a very […]

Toxic People: Narcissists in Ministry

7 March 2013, 06:00

Moderator

The most read Hope Blog posts in the last four years have been the the series addressing toxic people and how to deal with those in your life who are unrepentant human destruction machines. These posts have received tens of thousands of hits over the last few years as those searching have come across the […]

Dear Grace: Letter From a Parent

7 February 2013, 06:00

Moderator

118

Dear Grace, As a former ATI (Advanced Training Institute) parent, I’ve appreciated many of the articles published on your site. They have opened my eyes to things that went on behind the scenes at IBLP (Institute in Basic Life Principles) and caused me to rethink much of what we were taught (and at one time […]

It’s All In Your Head!

4 February 2013, 06:04

HelenE

Bill Gothard teaches many things that are erroneous. Even dedicated followers admit the need to pick and choose. This story outlines only a few of them in relation to what I experienced starting in 1992. Bill’s teaching on mental illness is that it is caused by irresponsibility or a character deficiency. I disagree. I was […]

Words that Wound

31 January 2013, 06:00

Cyndi

Most of us have been there. You venture outside your pain and tell someone you have been spiritually abused. You test the waters, saying, “I’ve been hurt.” Sadly, others, especially those who profess Christ, can utter words that cut deep, invalidate your experience, and leave you like the traveler on the side of the road, […]

Identifying Religious Brainwashing: Doctrine Over Person

28 January 2013, 06:00

Stephen Smith

[Editor’s note: This is part 7 of an 8-part original series. Not all parts have been published on Recovering Grace. To read all 8 parts, please refer to the links below.] This is the seventh in an eight-part series on how to identify brainwashing in a destructive group or cult. It is based off of Dr. […]

The Promise of a Thousand Anecdotes

7 January 2013, 06:00

Moderator

Objects in anecdotes may be less glorious than they appear.

A recurring question in the comments sections of Recovering Grace and for former ATI (Advanced Training Institute) students who share their stories elsewhere, is how and why loving parents would stay in such a program. Two explanations have been explored on this site, and I’d like to posit and explore a third. The first explanation: […]

The Subtle Power of Spiritual Abuse: Concluding Thoughts

13 December 2012, 06:35

MatthewS

The Subtle Power of Spiritual Abuse, Concluding Thoughts We conclude our Thursday series blogging through “The Subtle Power of Spiritual Abuse.” The first post in the series is here. We come to the end of this road together. This has been rewarding for me, and I hope it has been for others as well. All […]

Peering Underneath the Umbrella: Musings on Gothardism

3 December 2012, 06:00

Moderator

In recent days, I’ve been reading a bit about Gothardism on various websites, and it has brought back a lot of memories. Growing up, my family never went hardcore into the ATI (Advanced Training Institute) program, and we would still be considered on the outer fringes by the inner circle members. We were actually very “worldly” […]