Godly discipline turned deadly

Salon ^ | February 22, 2010 | Lynn Harris

[Lurking Libertarian]

Godly discipline turned deadly

A controversial child "training" practice comes under fire -- this time from Christians themselves

Four years ago this month, a 4-year-old boy named Sean Paddock died when his adoptive mother wrapped him in blankets so tightly that he couldn't breathe. His adoptive mother, Lynn Paddock, was later convicted of his murder. The case brought some mainstream attention -- including a 2006 Salon story -- to the popular, pervasive and controversial child "training" practices of Michael and Debi Pearl, which Lynn Paddock was said to have followed. The teachings of the Pearls and their Tennessee-based No Greater Joy ministry, which brought in $1.8 million last year in sales of books, DVDs and the like, are widely known and normalized across many conservative Christian churches and home-schooling communities. Perhaps the most popular of several ultra-conservative Christian figures to carry forward this centuries-old strain of Christian thought, the Pearls advocate a specific program of even-tempered, non-injurious corporal punishment, or "chastisement," designed to bring about total obedience -- even by infants -- to their sovereign parents. (The Pearls' ministry and principles are described in greater depth, and broader context, here.) By no means do the Pearls advocate suffocation with blankets; they are emphatically against "abuse." But they do not spare the rod. From their Web site: A length of quarter-inch plumbing supply line is a "real attention-getter."

This month, another child has died: 7-year-old Lydia Schatz, an apparent victim of repeated beating with -- as it turns out -- quarter-inch plumbing supply line.

[DesertRhino]

Creepy. Bullies like these parents need a dose of their own medicine from someone 5 times their size. And though Salon is trying to make it a Christian thing, it’s also practiced by those new-age types too. A couple of years ago, a little kid here was suffocated in a blanket.
There is some touchy-feely therapy called “rebirthing”,,
Wrap the kid in a blanket, pull it up to a single point.

It’s supposed to represent a womb. The child has to fight their way out to be “reborn”. This little kid in foster care suffocated trying.
Sick sick crap to do that to kids,,

[ConservativeDude]

I am very familiar with the perl’s teachings. I can hardly say how much I despise their views.

[Niuhuru]

Special.Place.In.Hell.

I just hate how children are dying at the hands of their increasingly crazy parents.

[ConservativeDude]

i am delighted that conservative, evangelical homeschoolers are finally turning against the perls, as the article notes. probably too little outrage, but it’s a start....

[dinoparty]

I know nothing about the Pearls or their teachings, other than what I found in this article just now:

http://www.nogreaterjoy.org/articles/general-view/archive/2009/december/03/cheerful-authoritative-consistent/

Sounds good and true to me, but I guess the devil is in the details.

[justsaynomore]

“widely known and normalized across many conservative Christian churches and home-schooling communities”

Excuse me???? I have been in a conservative Christian church all my life, and I have homeschooled for 8 years and I have never heard of them.

[darkangel82]

Salon, like other Lib media places, just makes it up.

[stormer]

I've encountered these scumbags before. They are really, really sick. Have a gander at this:

http://stoptherod.net/ttuac.html

Nothing short of child abuse in the name of God, and the Pearls should be charged with conspiracy to commit, and accompliced to, murder.

[kaylar]

Did you read Beth Fennimore's Open Letter to Roy Lessin at that site? My God...I last read that YEARS ago , but as soon as I read this article I remembered her letter. Anyone who doubts this is TORTURE needs to read her story. Roy Lessin's beliefs and teachings are similar to the Pearls, but waaaay more out there IMO.

[Ellendra]

...you slap the title 'Christian' on something, and all of a sudden it's the 'Christian' thing. Sometimes, in my experience, that's all it takes for Christians to start following something.

When Christ called us "sheep", it wasn't a compliment.

[Between the Lines]

There is some touchy-feely therapy called “rebirthing”,,

Thanks for some clarification. At first I thought maybe they were just swaddling the child which is a method accepted by the medical profession used to calm hysterical developmentally challenged children.

[stormer]

Thanks for sharing that, but I really wish I hadn’t read it.

[Lurking Libertarian]

Excuse me???? I have been in a conservative Christian church all my life, and I have homeschooled for 8 years and I have never heard of them.

Some of the other posters evidently have heard a lot about them.

[Spudx7]

Someone told me to check out the Pearl's book when my then 3yr old daughter was having a particularly bad day in public. I checked out their website and the thing I came away with was using a switch on the palm of the hand. I never saw anything about severe beatings. Maybe I missed it, maybe the anti-spanking crowd is exaggerating. I haven't been to that site for a few years.

I think these parents just lost control and don't want to admit that they chose to do something so evil, so they blame someone else.

I did a great deal of babysitting in high school and college and the most out of control kids I had to deal with were the ones whose parents didn't believe in spanking. Ugh. There is a huge difference between spanking and abuse.

[stormer]

Here's Roy, for what's it's worth.

I would gladly instuct him as to his shortcomings.

[justsaynomore]

“Some of the other posters evidently have heard a lot about them.”

So? I’ve heard of Rahm Emmanuel, does that make me a liberal? I don’t see anyone here defending this behavior.

What bothers me about articles like this is I think the left is chomping at the bit for any reason to do away with homeschooling, or ratify the UN Rights of the Child Treaty or to justify becoming more intrusive into the home and church. What better way to start a crusade than to lump conservatives with nutcases.

The same way they are trying to discredit tea partiers trying to link them with the Stack guy, or paint all gun owners as nuts by trying to link them with anyone who commits a crime with a gun...

Surely as a libertarian you see a problem with this?

[Lurking Libertarian]

Surely as a libertarian you see a problem with this?

I read the article, saw it was in Salon, and had my doubts as to whether these folks are as mainstream as the article claims. (I am a Jew, not a Christian, so I had never heard of them before.) So I posted it, in order to see the reaction of Freepers more knowledgeable than I. Apparently, a lot of people have heard of them.

[kaylar]

I found his website and I looked to see if he ever answered the Open Letter, but apparently not...But I note his book on "disciplining" children is NOT one of the products he is currently selling. Maybe he's changed or at least moderated his views...But that doesn't change the hundreds or thousands of copies in used bookstores all over North America.

I like to hope that maybe someone who has the book and might have thought of using it read this article and Ms. Fenimore's letter, and thought better of it.

[Shimmer1]

I have read the Pearl’s books and I love them and find them greatly helpful. I didn’t implement the advice exactly, but in my own way and found them greatly helpful in not having to constantly keep disciplining my children. I trained them properly and carefully and then they haven’t had to have much more. They’ve become wonderful, loving and strong adults with integrity. I’m proud of them and get many compliments on their behavior and character.