Posted on 08/26/2014 9:23:43 AM PDT by fishtank
An Open Letter to Duggar Defenders The problem real here is that you very likely do not understand the Duggar’s subculture
Written by Libby Anne | Monday, August 25, 2014
The Duggars are part of a very specific subculture of the Christian homeschooling world, one dominated by leaders like Doug Phillips of Vision Forum and Bill Gothard of ATI, whose incredibly restrictive teachings and controlling practices have earned them the adjective “cult-like.” These organizations and leaders teach that children must be trained to obey their parents completely, without question, and with a smile; that women are not to have careers and that daughters should be actively discouraged from considering such; that adult daughters must continue to obey their fathers and must marry through parent-controlled courtships; that college attendance is problematic for children of either gender but especially for girls; and that marrying and having large numbers of children is the only godly path available.
(Excerpt) Read more at theaquilareport.com ...
Today we as a society won't let teenagers do anything. People used to get married and have children much younger then they do today.
On the one hand on this forum we bemoan the young know and do nothings, but on the other hand we blast people who are teaching their children life skills.
The older girls do do a lot of the work but they don't seem to resent it. They will all be awesome moms themselves someday, if they so chose.
I know....I’m really scratching my head here....I wasn’t asked to start working for my dad at age 14...I was rousted out of bed and tossed in the van...
I was making $10/hr and had to give back one paycheck a month to the household...
When I turned 16 I paid cash for a nice muscle car and a brand new rice burner...and I literally had money to burn...
I now have 36 years experience in the electrical field and I’m a licensed master electrician...
And now I find out I was abused?.....
I should dig up the old man and kick his ass....LMAO!
To each his own, but no, I would not want the life of the older Duggar daughters. A girl can have a wholesome teenage life without having to be a mini-Mom.
All that said, I've also seen the danger. It always did have cultish overtones IMHO. It all comes down to is it coerced or is it a choice? For instance, scripture tells us we should raise our girls to be modest. But if you start setting legalistic rules about it within a church, it starts to assume a power it should not have. Quantifying the rules starts to remove some of the strength of scripture - it's why we aren't stuck in the 9th century like the muslims.
Then I have noticed over the years Michelle has definitely "loosened up" with the girl's dress - they do wear make up, and they don't wear those exaggerated prairie style dresses anymore.
The Duggers are ATI royalty with a ‘ministry” so they get some wiggle room. They are now outside the teachings of the cult. If the dress code can be violated for ministry purposes then why are any of the rules not inviolate?
ATI tells you when to have sex, how often and how. Tells you not to eat pork. How your facial expressions should look. How to speak. No playing cards. No “back beat” in music. Associations with outsiders discouraged. No movie theaters. Etc.
If Duggers can pick and choose are any strictures valid?
Actually, I don’t have that much of a problem with that. They’ve been to Japan, China, the west coast, South America, the Caribbean - I wish I would have done the things for my teen age years those girls had. I didn’t have half the experiences those girls did.
And as far as “raising children” - that’s how it is. That is what life is, and used to be. Families all used to be much bigger and everyone had to help. They are learning what life is, and they are going to be well prepared. They will know whether or not they really do want children, a few or a lot, and how to care for them.
But it has been easier for them because remember, they’ve been homeschooled, so they didn’t have to do a lot of juggling. I homeschooled my kids, so it all sort of falls in place because outside demands are minimized. When homeschooling is working for you, it really works, and you get a rhythm that just buzzes along. The kids tend to really like it or we wouldn’t do it, and families get very close.
Honey Boo Boo's family.
I know for instance they don’t believe in dancing, but I had friends that were raised not to read novels - they now do. I had friends that were told movies were ungodly! We now have movie night on Sunday nights! Ha!
I can understand the reasoning from the ATI materials - it is not good to listen to music with a strong beat because that can raise sexual thoughts in an unchristian mind and that is unkind, but we might as well all put ourselves in straightjackets and give over to the idea we have no control over our minds at all- there has to be a medium. It does nothing for the witness of Christ to go around dressed weird.
ATI materials are extra biblical. Which ones are holier than others? The when and how to have sex? The use of fresh ground grains? Cabbage patch dolls are idolatry? It never ends. ATI materials are expensive garbage and reflect tremendous insecurity. Good comments but you shouldn’t give any of it creedence.
You must not have grown up on a farm. We all had responsibilities. I learned to milk a cow at a very young age. I learned to tell veggies from weeds. I even milked a goat when my older brother had to drink goat’s milk. We worked hard but we played hard, too. Not one person I knew growing up got into trouble of any kind. We were too busy. Kids today do not even know where milk, eggs, veggies, fruit come from. We were outside in nice weather instead of sitting around playing video games or on the computer. I treasure my childhood memories. The Duggars are learning valuable life skills which I can not say of many kids today. They, too, will have wonderful memories.
I get that impression, too.
See, that’s how it used to be. The Duggar girls will never lack for babysitters I have a feeling. It’s how it used to be and it worked.
I do not watch TV. Recent circumstances had me in the unusual position of watching 1/2 hour of the Duggar reality show. Because I do not watch TV, I am capable of being very objective.
The family is a cult.
The group is pre occupied with bringing in new members - themselves. (the endless pregnancies).
The group is pre occupied with making money - their TV show.
Members are expected to devote inordinate amounts of time to the group and other group related activities. The “older” children have no escape from taking care of the younger.
There is a cult level of dysfunction here.
You have given your boys the correct advice.
The opportunity at Chrysler is the ticket.
America first.
Manufacture here.
Let’s go.
I’ve never seen the show, but I’ve been very familiar with the Gothard cult for many years.
I was getting pressured to go to Gothard seminars, and when a coworker bought me a “free” ticket, I was forced to go. Soon after, I read as much as I could about Gothard’s group (at the time, there was NOT as much material as there is now).
Thanks for your note.
I guess there is nothing to argue about here, I don`t see anything wrong with not going to college, and I see nothing wrong with teaching the young’uns to work.
I starting milking a cow when I was six years old and was working in the fields not long after.
It did nothing to brain wash me because after I was older and still working in the fields I could raise as much hell on Saturday night as any one else.
If people are worried about it because they think it is a cult then they need to realize that the public school system
are a much more dangerous cult, teaching that it is normal for boys to make love to boys and girls to make love to girls.
Nothing is perfect except God but if I had children at home I would much rather have them join something like the Duggar’s than the Government cult that is destroying this country.
Your post reminds me of this email that I got today.
Jot down what you think may have been the #1 cause of death in the world in the past 100 years then watch this clip.
Bet you never thought of this……….(2 Minute Video)
http://www.youtube.com/embed/0sujnvIV4g4
Your post reminds me of this email that I got today.
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