A Matter of Basic Principles by Veinot Don

Author:Veinot, Don [Veinot, Don]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Midwest Christian Outreach, Inc
Published: 2003-08-25T04:00:00+00:00

Where does all of this lead? What kind of results can we expect from the kind of teaching that robs Christians of their spiritual freedom?

Most of us know that Jesus was comparing false teachers to trees that produce bad fruit when He said, “Ye shall know them by their fruits” (Matthew 7:16). Well, we’ve been hanging around Gothard’s tree for several years now, and the fruit we’ve seen is not the kind you want to write the folks at home about — except maybe to warn them.

We at Midwest Christian Outreach have received numerous phone calls, letters, and emails from families broken upon the hard rocks of Gothardite legalism. We have seen the members of churches that have been rent asunder by the divisiveness of ATI families. We have met with people who have been excommunicated from their churches for expressing even moderate disagreement with IBLP literature. We know of elderly parents whose children have turned against them in the name of Gothard’s “principles” and have alienated their grandchildren from them. We know of many who shun anyone who does not follow Gothard’s dress code, medical manuals, or one of dozens of other things.

A man contacted us because the pastor and congregation of his church helped his wife and children move to another state while he was gone. Why did they do that? Because he resisted being indoctrinated into Gothardism.

Someone from a close-knit rural community with a majority population of evangelical Christians emailed us. Because of their remote location, most of the families there had been home-schooling for years, and until recently it was the kind of town where everyone looked out for each other. But when one of the local pastors started pushing the ATI homeschooling curriculum, trouble started. Those who switched to it tried to pressure all the other families into using it, too. Eventually the ATI home-schoolers refused to allow their children to play with non-ATI homeschooled children, and the community was torn in half — by Gothardism.

The Pharisees had many traditions that were structured in such a way that they could turn a cold heart to others and feel quite spiritual about doing it. For example, they had a “principle” called “Corban,” which means “given to God” (Mark 7:10-11). The idea was that one could dedicate his money, property, and other possessions to the temple. He had free use of the possessions for himself, but under the Corban principle he could not use them to help family or friends who might be in need. It sounded extremely spiritual. What could be more righteous than giving one’s possessions to God? And so the Pharisees’ version of “biblical principles” allowed them to say, “Mom, Dad, I would really like to help by paying your rent but I am committed to following God’s principles.” The result was harming those in need and disobedience to God. If your “non-optional principles of life” are making you less loving than you used to be, they’re not truly biblical principles.

We have heard too

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