This June will mark three years since Josh Duggar officially began serving out his prison sentence at a federal facility in Seagoville, Texas, and in that time, his family hasn’t mentioned him publicly very often. But during a recent podcast appearance, Jinger Duggar made an exception, admitting that her older brother has made some “very bad” decisions.
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While she was a guest on the Deep End With Lecrae podcast this week, Jinger opened up about growing up under the Institute in Basic Life Principles, the cult-like religion her parents Jim Bob and Michelle raised their children in.
“The Bill Gothard IBLP, Institute in Basic Life Principles, is what they were called. He basically came on the scene, he would fill up massive stadiums of thousands of people, he would promise these parents a guarantee for success for their families,” she said. “So if you do my seven steps to freedom, you will gain freedom with Christ.”
The IBLP’s seven steps included “design, authority, responsibility, suffering, ownership, freedom, and success,” according to its website.
“They were fear based, manipulative, superstitious – it was a lot of outward standards,” Jinger continued. “So the girls would wear skirts only, not listen to any music with drums. We couldn’t work outside the house.”
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Now that Jinger is a mom herself, she said she understands how having “concrete solutions for parenting” would seem like the answers to all of the questions that come up while raising children.
“Ultimately, it does come down to trusting God with your kids, and I think that’s where Bill Gothard … he missed it,” she said. “He had this solution outside of scripture, outside of a relationship with God, because you didn’t even have to be a Christian at that point. You follow his rules and you’re good.”
Even though Jim Bob and Michelle were very strict about following Gothard’s rules, their oldest son, Josh, still ended up in plenty of trouble, from being at the center of a molestation scandal that involved his younger sisters to eventually landing in prison after he was convicted of possessing and receiving child sexual assault material.
“It was not until later on when we were walking through a lot of difficulties publicly, one of my brothers made decisions that were very bad and that landed him in prison,” Jinger said on the podcast. “In that time, I realized people are looking at this as Christianity, but this is not what the gospel is about. Somebody needs to speak up.”
It’s not often that Jinger talks about her older brother, but she and husband Jeremy Vuolo did make it very clear that they did not support him or his actions in a statement they released after his conviction.
“We are thankful to God for exposing Josh’s actions and to a legal system committed to protecting the innocent and punishing the guilty in this case,” the couple shared at the time in the post. “We are grateful for justice. We are praying for further justice, vindication, protection, and healing for all those who have been wronged.”
