What to Know
Before Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar’s kids grew up and got married, there was hope from 19 Kids and Counting fans to “free” Jinger Duggar. For whatever reason, she was seen as someone who didn’t want to follow in the family’s strict religious footsteps. Spoiler alert: she was never a rebel of any kind but she did leave the house to marry a more worldly type of guy. But don’t get too excited yet because her husband, Jeremy Vuolo, is Christian too. And now, people have lots of thoughts about Jinger’s church with her husband.
Both Jinger and Jeremy have spoken out about the Institute in Basic Life Principles (IBLP) which she grew up with. The teachings were made possible by founder Bill Gothard, who later faced controversy over multiple sexual abuse and grooming allegations. Jinger doesn’t follow IBLP anymore, but according to Reddit, her church is just as disturbing and she traded one “cult” for another.
Jinger Duggar’s church is a bit different than the one she attended in Arkansas.
Jinger and her husband Jeremy belong to Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, Calif. The church has similar Christian Baptist beliefs that Jinger grew up with in terms of core beliefs about sins, marriage, and gender roles. However, the church also practices Calvinism, which is a belief that God presides over all decisions and that free will does not necessarily exist, per Redeeming God.
Someone commented on the Reddit post, “Jeremy is part of the MacArthur cult, which still requires women to stay married to abusers. The cult he’s in is just as bad as the IBLP, and still breeds abusers and predators. Jinger simply traded one cult for another cult. There are currently multiple lawsuits filed against the church that Jeremy and Jinger attend. They are not any better and Jeremy has no room to cast stones at the IBLP when MacArthur used to run in the same circles as Bill Gothard.”
This is in reference to claims that the church Jinger now attends, which was founded by the minister John MacArthur, operates as a cult with current and former members of the church.
In the same Reddit thread, which discussed Jinger and Jeremy discussing Joseph Duggar’s alleged crimes and accusations involving child molestation, another user commented, “It’s awfully hard to sit on a couch and discuss something this evil when your church treats sexual assault survivors like lepers.”
People still think it’s a cult.
While some Duggar snarkers on Reddit and beyond view IBLP as a sort of cult that has specific rules and beliefs for church members and followers to adhere to, they also see Jinger’s new church with Jeremy as a cult. It should also be noted that the church’s website shows a full roster of male ministers and not one woman among them.
When someone wrote on Reddit about the church, “Their current church is really creepy. I have a friend who attended a wedding there recently. So many red flags,” another user responded with their own perception of Jinger’s California-based church.
“Swapped one cult to another,” they wrote.
The Duggar family’s religion has faced major controversy.
After 19 Kids and Counting and Counting On ended, the Duggar family’s religious beliefs and general everyday customs under IBLP came into question. According to NBC News, a big component of the Christian fundamentalist organization is the umbrella of God presiding over the husband, who rules the wife, who rules the house and children. And that’s just a small part of it.
In 2014, Gothard resigned from the church over sexual assault allegations. While some of the adult Duggar kids, particular Jill Duggar and Jinger, have left IBLP, it seems to still be a part of Jim Bob and Michelle’s life.
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