Jinger Duggar opens up about 'cult-like' upbringing: I'm 'disentangling faith from fear'
Duggar shares details of her religious journey with Dana Perino
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Jinger Duggar is speaking out about the significant life changes she’s made after being raised to believe what she described as "harmful" and "manipulative" religious teachings. She joined "America’s Newsroom" Thursday to explain her journey of separating faith from fear.
Duggar is one of 19 siblings featured on the popular television show "19 Kids and Counting," which began when she was 10 years old. Duggar shared details about her upbringing and religious revelations in her new book, "Becoming Free Indeed."
The Duggar family was well known for its strict religious beliefs. The family followed the teachings of Bill Gothard, a so-called American Christian minister and founder of the Institute in Basic Life Principles (IBLP).
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"I wrote this book because it is the story of my faith journey," Duggar told host Dana Perino. "This is the story of me disentangling faith from fear."
Jinger Duggar Vuolo's book cover (Thomas Nelson)
Duggar said Gothard’s teachings invoked fear and confusion. It wasn’t until she met her now-husband Jeremy Vuolo, who spent 60 hours studying Gothard’s teachings, that she realized they did not line up with the Bible.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"This guy says he's a Bible teacher, but his teaching is just based on fear, superstition, manipulation and control," said Duggar, who told Fox News Digital that she viewed the teachings as "cult-like in nature."
In her book, Duggar also addressed allegations by "Gothard’s girls" that he engaged them in inappropriate and explicit sexual activities. Ten of the accusers filed a lawsuit against Gothard in 2016.
BEVERLY HILLS, CALIFORNIA - JULY 23: (L-R) Jeremy Vuolo and Jinger Duggar Vuolo attend Discovery's "Serengeti" premiere at Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts on July 23, 2019 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Michael Kovac/Getty Images for Discovery Channel )
"With those types of allegations, it's just so heartbreaking to see how you could still follow these teachings and say, ‘This guy is a prophet from God,’ because it's just not the case," she said.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"That's why I wanted to speak up. That's why I wanted to share my story and hopefully expose these teachings for what they are."
Jinger Duggar Vuolo as a child with her family (Courtesy of Jinger Vuolo)
As for her familial relationships, Duggar said she’s had no contact with her currently imprisoned brother, Josh, for years. He was arrested in 2021 on possession of child pornography and sentenced to serve 151 months.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"I just pray that he would truly be broken over what he's done, and I'm grateful that justice is being served," she said.
Duggar said she’s had many conversations with other family members about the differences in their beliefs. Some, she said, respond to those conversations better than others.
"At the end of the day, I know that they just want what's best for me, even though my parents are still in IBLP," she said. "I would just hope that they could read this book and even see why I see it's needful to come out of that."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Duggar has said her Christian faith remains strong despite the "light bulb moment" about Gothard's teachings.
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"I always thought Bill Gothard was a Bible teacher. And that was a light bulb moment… It challenged me to examine everything closely according to the word of God, according to the Scripture. It helped me to become free. I was no longer bound by this one man. I wasn’t going to follow one man – I was going to follow Jesus. I was going to follow the word of God as I saw in the Scripture."