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Articles about how Bill Gothard mishandles the Bible to support his legalistic viewpoint.

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Author Archives: admin

Thoughts on “Tangled”

8 September 2014, 06:00

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My wife and I watched the movie Tangled last night. For months now, we’d heard from other former ATI students that the movie was a great analogy for spiritual abuse and the journey out of a legalistic system of thought. It’s even been referenced a number of times here on Recovering Grace. (see last Thursday’s […]

The GOTHARD Files: Corresponding with Bill

4 February 2014, 06:00

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Dear Recovering Grace Reader, As mentioned in our Gracenote yesterday, our leadership team had a brief period of correspondence with Bill Gothard in June of 2013. After much consideration, our team has decided to make the entirety of this correspondence public. The following emails were exchanged between Bill Gothard and the Recovering Grace Leadership […]

One Way Love: An Antidote to Gothardism

11 November 2013, 06:00

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“The Bible is one long story of God meeting our rebellion with His rescue, our sin with His salvation, our guilt with His grace, our badness with His goodness. The overwhelming focus of the Bible is not the work of the redeemed but the work of the Redeemer. Which means that the Bible is not […]

“Rocky” Arguments and a Double Standard

3 October 2013, 06:00

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Many people over the years have expressed concern with the way Bill Gothard misuses Scripture—not to mention basic logic—in his attempts to validate his dogmatic pseudo-spiritual requirements for “successful” living. A friend of mine recently shared a document (pictured) obtained while attending an IBLP (Institute in Basic Life Principles) conference on effective communication. In […]

Outcome-Based Storytelling

14 March 2013, 06:00

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As a youngster, I participated in a Bible drill competition. I’m not sure about other churches, but in Southern Baptist circles, “Bible drills” are a big thing. Students in grades 4, 5 and 6 memorize a score of verses, some short passages, and references for general topics like “The Lord’s Prayer,” “The Ten Commandments,” and […]

A Matter of Basic Principles-A Review

23 March 2012, 06:00

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INTRODUCTION When I was 18 or 19 years old I really began to question the teachings of Bill Gothard, the Advanced Training Institute, and the Institute in Basic Life Principles. I had seen some things at various training centers that didn’t line up with the principles that Bill taught, and I began feeling in my […]

I Kissed Courtship Goodbye!

13 February 2012, 06:00

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When I was in my early 20’s I spent about 13 months working at an ACE school in Mexico. It so happened that one of my brother’s friends, a guy I had met previously at the IBLP (Institute in Basic Life Principles) Dallas Training Center, lived there as well. His family would frequently have me […]

Thoughts on “Tangled”

17 January 2012, 06:00

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The Phony “Consequences” of Rock Music

14 November 2011, 06:00

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One the foundational tenets of Bill Gothard’s teachings is the idea that one’s level of spiritual maturity is directly connected to the number of commitments one makes to God. On the website description of the IBLP publication “Seventeen Basic Commitments” is found this statement: “Spiritual maturity is related to the number of Scriptural commitments that […]

Breeding Relational Immaturity

18 October 2011, 06:00

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It is no secret that Bill Gothard and the Institute in Basic Life Principles (IBLP) have a bizarre outlook on male/female relationships. In a world where falling in love means losing a piece of your heart forever, relationships are a spiritual distraction, and in a place where marriage is a last resort, it is no […]