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Why has tlc never shown us...


nataraja

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It would be really interesting to know what it's like. If it's like other fundie churches from personal experience they preach very often (probably the majority of the time) about men's and women's roles and practical lifestyle guidelines. I wonder if the Duggars follow a sermon topic rotation, or listen to messages streaming from IBLP (or some main church a lot of ATI folks go to), or what? So many questions.

We know they have singing specials sometimes and I wonder if they do a children's message where all the kids come forward and sit in the front rows and one of the men from in the congregation does a little skit, since if they're NCFIC they don't have separate children's church. My dad's favorite children's message is about salt and light from Matt. 5:13-16 - using a lamp and the wiring connection going through a jar of some distilled water, gradually adding salt to make the light come on. He made sure the kids stayed far away for safety. In those fundie churches they used to take turns bringing the message. Not many of the men had polished public speaking skills, it was kind of hit and miss if the sermons were cohesive. :lol:

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I would love the Duggars to show a real truthful series of episodes about how certain aspects of their lives work. One aspect would be how the home church works. I don't want to hear the sermons. I would like Jim Bob to talk about how he started the home church (like did he study the Bible, become a pastor, go to a "seminar"). Then how the church grew to other families, since home church was suppose to be just the Duggars? at first? Then how they invite new members and how the new building works, how long are services , any youth programs?

I would also like to see a special on how homeschooling works now. Of course we will never get the truth because the show purpose is a ministry to suck the viewers into wanting to become just like the Duggars, because as we know every quiverful ATI home church family lives the way the Duggars do!

There's this promo video they did for the curriculum they use that's the closest i've ever seen. They have Grandma, Jana, and of course JB and Michelle as the teachers/helpers. Nothing about the Query girl or other help. And it looks like a lot of online. I didn't notice any shots of textbooks, just some worksheets and crafts. She mentioned it keeps track of their scores, so i guess they only do digital, Switched On Schoolhouse. AOP has physical workbooks too (Lifepacs), so i could be wrong. :shrug:

[bBvideo 560,340:3loq77nv]https://youtu.be/q4UNgcK4urw[/bBvideo]

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There's this promo video they did for the curriculum they use that's the closest i've ever seen. They have Grandma, Jana, and of course JB and Michelle as the teachers/helpers. Nothing about the Query girl or other help. And it looks like a lot of online. I didn't notice any shots of textbooks, just some worksheets and crafts. She mentioned it keeps track of their scores, so i guess they only do digital, Switched On Schoolhouse. AOP has physical workbooks too (Lifepacs), so i could be wrong. :shrug:

[bBvideo 560,340:2sfjn42d]https://youtu.be/q4UNgcK4urw[/bBvideo]

They have enough space and adults in there to make at the very least an High school and an elementary school group. It would be so much better if they split them up by age group. That way the older kids won't have to be slowed down because their 7 year old sibling must understand it as well. Of course that would mean that Chell and Boob have to teach in stead of letting the older kids teach the youngest.

"Kids don't always follow your schedule" Uhu cool story Michelle. But that does not mean that it is ok for your kids to ride a freaking bike in the house and in the same freaking room where people are trying to learn. That is just bad education/parenting. It is not like they don't have a huge ass yard or something. :angry-banghead:

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I felt like their school was a sham from the time we saw the scene where Michelle was teaching about bankruptcy. Really?? The whole family was there from toddler to high school age. :disgust:

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I agree about the schooling, I don't think they take it seriously at all and that's why the younger ones seem behind. I imagine they don't show their home church because it's really weird and culty. Which is weird because they claim the show is a minibar

ministry.

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Home church is always by invitation only. No drop-ins. They are nearly always Family Integrated services--no age-segregation, though the little children may be in another room for sanity sake. Some do nearly a full day with a lunch thrown in. I assume they don't want people to just drop by.

They may also do public discipline of church members--calling them out on transgressions etc and that would not be broadcast. I'm sure they are hymns only--no CCM or Worship music. Pretty blah without a trained choir. And KJV only with no trained preacher--yikes that can be hours of rambling.

I thought maybe they moved into some of the space where there so called "Guest house" is? DIdn't the outgrow the ranch house they were using for church--it was shown several seasons ago when John went to fix a pump problem and maybe another time. I don't know if the Duggars owned that house or not.

Interesting about Erin and Chad......

The Duggars are Independent Fundamentalist Baptists, but the weddings were likely in Southern Baptist churches due to their size. I am not 100% on what churches were affiliated with the SBC though.

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I think the "posted waiver" is what they do. I remember seeing pictures posted of the notice at the Jubilee fiasco. There may have been some pics from Jillybean's wedding prohibiting photography as well but I dont remember where I saw that on instagram.

I think they do a posted waiver too for large events and people in the crowd who get caught on camera. However, I just happen to have Josh McD's post to TWoP saved for posterity. Josh McD (I don't remember his full name) is very much ExATI. He is married to Anna's sister Rebekkah.

By his account, he felt personally badgered by TLC to sign a waiver. He was pissed.

From TWoP and I think this was 2009, but I didn't save the link or date.

Where to start? This is a post I have waited to write for a long time and I can finally do so now that the wedding episode has aired. Before now, I was not permitted to speak of such things..

There have been many comments about the integrity of the Keller family and I would like to reveal some information that may set the record straight. You may ask how I can validate the information I will give: I am the guy that married the second Keller girl and was in the Duggar/Keller wedding as a groomsman. I have been following this thread since August of last year, and have enjoyed a lot of the snark. However, there are some items that were offensive, because even if I don't agree with my in-laws on a lot of (most) things, they are still my wife's family. That, and TLC did what media usually does: they twisted things to make them say what they wanted said. The supposed focus on sex (at least on the Kellers side) is NOTHING compared to what TLC has made it out to be. They want everyone to think this is what conservative fundies are focused on, but at least with the Keller family, this is the farthest thing from the truth. TLC has done a good job of using their show as a tool to change some things into UNreality.

I can't speak much regarding the Duggars as I don't know them at all outside of the wedding experience (read *insanity*). However, the Kellers are a very sweet family that really don't deserve the level of snark thrown at them. Dad Keller (which is what the older son-in-law and I call him) is not the child molester everyone is making him out to be. He has struggled severely with a chronic health condition over the past 10 years and it's a miracle that he can still walk. He has a heart of gold that is intent on ministering to young people in detention centers throughout Florida and he has served faithfully for many years in this area. Several of his older children have worked in the dentention centers with him, including Anna and my wife. I have been with him to these centers on several occassions. It is a difficult job, but one that he has willingly taken on. At this time, Florida will not allow a non-resident into the detention centers anymore and I therefore am not allowed to accompany him when we visit as my wife and I live in Texas.

As far as their beliefs are concerned: there are many areas where I disagree with my in-laws (and my own parents for that matter). I was raised in the same ATI/Bill Gothard/homeschool sect as the Duggars and Kellers, and as I grew older, I found the lack of truth in the teachings of this person and organizaton and developed my own convictions and standards. My wife and I are both beyond many of the things we were raised in and have left the quiverful movement and it's associated mentality behind.

That's not to say that we do not claim conservative Christianity. We both do. However, the fundamental junk that has permeated into a legalistic mindset of supposed relevant standards and lifestyles are all sickening to me. The sad thing about it is that a lot of people raised in this lifestyle never even stop to think for themselves and consider what the Bible really teaches. I did, and that's why I fall on the other side of the line from the rest of my family. Snark at me for being a conservative Christian, but don't snark at me for not thinking for myself.

The producers of the show did a fairly lousy job of revealing the reality of who the Kellers are. The interview where Dad Keller is talking about the wine/grape juice thing was about 45 minutes long. They only put two clips in it to make the dramatic statements that everyone wants to see. How do I know? I was sitting the sanctuary the whole time waiting for the wedding pictures to start. We were supposed to be ready at 5:00 the evening of the wedding. I was ready, but no one else was. I sat in the sanctuary, just off camera, yet still able to see my father-in-law. No, I don't agree with everything he said, but that's beside the point.

Why weren't we interviewed on the show? I despise the whole TLC thing. The producers asked my wife three times if they could interview her, and she refused each time. I told them point-blank that I didn't want to be on the show. Why were we in the wedding to begin with? Because we love Anna.

The assistant producer asked me to sign an optional waiver form so that they could use my name and not blur my face on the show, and he told me it was fully optional. I told him I didn't want to sign it if it was optional and he complied with my wishes. I thought I was off the hook. But then, when pictures were being taken before the wedding, the main producer (good ol' Shawn) confronted me on the platform in front of most of the wedding party (including Josh and Jim Bob) and the other 50 people sitting in the sanctuary. He told me (in a loud voice) that I had to sign the waiver. We got in an argument about it in front of everyone and When I refused because it was optional, he said that if I didn't, he wouldn't permit me to be in the wedding because he wasn't going to destroy his show over one person who didn't want to be on TV.

Jerk.

I signed the waiver to keep the peace in the family. However, this was evidence to me that the Duggars weren't in control of TLC. It is definitely the other way around.

Oh, and Shawn (because I know you read this forum), your assistant producer lied to me about my wife signing the waiver. He used that as a ploy to try to get me to sign it. She was never approached about signing it and you filmed her and used the footage without her authorization, which if I remember correctly, is AGAINST THE LAW.

Yeah, that whole thing ticked me off.

Where was I? Oh yes..

As far as Anna is concerned, she loves Josh and the whole Duggar family. Out of all the girls in the Keller family, she is the one who does sincerely want that many kids. Really. How excited is she about the media attention? I don't know. She was always the one who didn't want to be on camera, but like I said, she really does love Josh and Josh really does love her.

My mother-in-law? She is quiet and always has been. However, she loves her children like no other mother I know (and not in that over-powering protective way). She for one hates the cameras on her. She doesn't like the camera and hates to be put on the spot. But that's just who she is. Yeah, she is kind of stuck in the old fundamental, extremely conservative appearance, but she likes it. So, just let her be.

Their trailer and property? Dad Keller drives roughly 15-20 hours a week to multiple detention centers and prisons throughout Florida. Their home allows him to access these multiple locations from a central spot. Yet again, TLC did a lousy job of depicting the Kellers. They live on multiple acres and have a tennis court, swimming pool, and soccer field BEHIND the trailer, which was never shown on the shows. They have invested their lives in the ministry they are involved in, spending tens of thousands of dollars of their own money to print books and literature for those they minister to. They regularly have guests over, their children are socially capable, and adequately rounded young people. Sheltered, yes; stupid, no. They are fun and engaging. I Wouldn't have married my wife if this weren't so.

Their church? They attend a church in their area (not Buford Grove Baptist Church), and do not have a "church of the holy basement."

Just for the record: the whole Jim Bob/Josh sex talk on the day of the wedding was staged. Shawn and the camera crew told Jim Bob to get Josh and "have the talk." They said they "needed" to get it for the show. Yet more evidence of how the producer(s) are skewing this to focus it more on sex. They filmed non-stop from Thursday night (wedding rehearsal) until Friday night at the hotel. It was literally non-stop with two different crews all over the grounds of the church. They could have made it more realistic, but they chose to use the staged questions and elements that they wanted to make the show say what they wanted. But, I digress...

What about me and my wife? We are happily married and have two children. I have a solid career in technology working for a company rated as the 5th best to work for in the state of Texas. Yes, I am heavily involved in my church (an actual building not located on my property). I don't know if I will homeschool my children yet or not. No, we aren't going to have 20 kids. Yes, we will probably have one or two more. No, my wife is not pregnant. No, we don't want our own reality TV show.

Oh...and the wedding dress was MY WIFE's. My wife graciously loaned the dress to Anna. Yes, I was ticked about the train getting ripped off... And all the suits that the boys and men wore? They were purchased at a discounted rate by Dad Keller from a guy who makes suits for preachers.

I'm sure there will be some who doubt the validity of this posting. You can believe me if you want or forget it if you don't. I think I have included enough detail to convince anyone that what I am saying and who I am is true. I don't intend to follow this thread and reply to every question that comes up. That's why this post is so incredibly long. Chances are, I won't reply again. I just wanted to set the record straight in regard to the Kellers as TLC did a horrible job representing them.

Shawn: I waited until after the wedding episode to post this stuff. You're welcome. Oh, and the waiter was classic. I will give you that much.

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Regarding the home church and their overall fringe fundamentalism never being shown, I found it interesting that on Josh's Christmas greeting video we could see a huge, weird biblical timeline hanging on the wall of the "Goodbye Room" that is about twenty feet long. From similar things I've seen on Amazon it's Earth's biblical timeline dating from the time of Adam (you know, 6,000 years ago). I wonder if the last bit of the chart (not easy to see in the video) shows all the End of Days prophecy and related bullshit (illustrations of the Beast With Seven Heads, etc.) Growing up in a Pentecostal church we had a similar huge banner with an Apocalypse timeline hanging at the front of the church sanctuary. Super creepy!

It would be bad for viewers to see this and realize just how literally the Duggars take the bible and the profound depth of those kids' ignorance due to their limited access to factual knowledge.

http://postimg.org/image/sbl2q9qxp/

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What about Michelle's family? We never see them. It's like Michelle self-spawned.

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What about Michelle's family? We never see them. It's like Michelle self-spawned.

Well, there was that Ruark family reunion that was in a special or episode aaaages go. And wasn't Grandpa Ruark on an episode or two very briefly (in passing, not interviewed) before he died? As I recall, Michelle is the youngest of 6 or 7 by a long shot, and I don't think her background was super-fundie. I'm sure the age difference has something to do with her (apparent lack of) closeness to her siblings, and they may not all be geographically close, either.

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I think the "posted waiver" is what they do. I remember seeing pictures posted of the notice at the Jubilee fiasco. There may have been some pics from Jillybean's wedding prohibiting photography as well but I dont remember where I saw that on instagram.

I think they do a posted waiver too for large events and people in the crowd who get caught on camera. However, I just happen to have Josh McD's post to TWoP saved for posterity. Josh McD (I don't remember his full name) is very much ExATI. He is married to Anna's sister Rebekkah.

By his account, he felt personally badgered by TLC to sign a waiver. He was pissed.

From TWoP and I think this was 2009, but I didn't save the link or date.

Where to start? This is a post I have waited to write for a long time and I can finally do so now that the wedding episode has aired. Before now, I was not permitted to speak of such things..

There have been many comments about the integrity of the Keller family and I would like to reveal some information that may set the record straight. You may ask how I can validate the information I will give: I am the guy that married the second Keller girl and was in the Duggar/Keller wedding as a groomsman. I have been following this thread since August of last year, and have enjoyed a lot of the snark. However, there are some items that were offensive, because even if I don't agree with my in-laws on a lot of (most) things, they are still my wife's family. That, and TLC did what media usually does: they twisted things to make them say what they wanted said. The supposed focus on sex (at least on the Kellers side) is NOTHING compared to what TLC has made it out to be. They want everyone to think this is what conservative fundies are focused on, but at least with the Keller family, this is the farthest thing from the truth. TLC has done a good job of using their show as a tool to change some things into UNreality.

I can't speak much regarding the Duggars as I don't know them at all outside of the wedding experience (read *insanity*). However, the Kellers are a very sweet family that really don't deserve the level of snark thrown at them. Dad Keller (which is what the older son-in-law and I call him) is not the child molester everyone is making him out to be. He has struggled severely with a chronic health condition over the past 10 years and it's a miracle that he can still walk. He has a heart of gold that is intent on ministering to young people in detention centers throughout Florida and he has served faithfully for many years in this area. Several of his older children have worked in the dentention centers with him, including Anna and my wife. I have been with him to these centers on several occassions. It is a difficult job, but one that he has willingly taken on. At this time, Florida will not allow a non-resident into the detention centers anymore and I therefore am not allowed to accompany him when we visit as my wife and I live in Texas.

As far as their beliefs are concerned: there are many areas where I disagree with my in-laws (and my own parents for that matter). I was raised in the same ATI/Bill Gothard/homeschool sect as the Duggars and Kellers, and as I grew older, I found the lack of truth in the teachings of this person and organizaton and developed my own convictions and standards. My wife and I are both beyond many of the things we were raised in and have left the quiverful movement and it's associated mentality behind.

That's not to say that we do not claim conservative Christianity. We both do. However, the fundamental junk that has permeated into a legalistic mindset of supposed relevant standards and lifestyles are all sickening to me. The sad thing about it is that a lot of people raised in this lifestyle never even stop to think for themselves and consider what the Bible really teaches. I did, and that's why I fall on the other side of the line from the rest of my family. Snark at me for being a conservative Christian, but don't snark at me for not thinking for myself.

The producers of the show did a fairly lousy job of revealing the reality of who the Kellers are. The interview where Dad Keller is talking about the wine/grape juice thing was about 45 minutes long. They only put two clips in it to make the dramatic statements that everyone wants to see. How do I know? I was sitting the sanctuary the whole time waiting for the wedding pictures to start. We were supposed to be ready at 5:00 the evening of the wedding. I was ready, but no one else was. I sat in the sanctuary, just off camera, yet still able to see my father-in-law. No, I don't agree with everything he said, but that's beside the point.

Why weren't we interviewed on the show? I despise the whole TLC thing. The producers asked my wife three times if they could interview her, and she refused each time. I told them point-blank that I didn't want to be on the show. Why were we in the wedding to begin with? Because we love Anna.

The assistant producer asked me to sign an optional waiver form so that they could use my name and not blur my face on the show, and he told me it was fully optional. I told him I didn't want to sign it if it was optional and he complied with my wishes. I thought I was off the hook. But then, when pictures were being taken before the wedding, the main producer (good ol' Shawn) confronted me on the platform in front of most of the wedding party (including Josh and Jim Bob) and the other 50 people sitting in the sanctuary. He told me (in a loud voice) that I had to sign the waiver. We got in an argument about it in front of everyone and When I refused because it was optional, he said that if I didn't, he wouldn't permit me to be in the wedding because he wasn't going to destroy his show over one person who didn't want to be on TV.

Jerk.

I signed the waiver to keep the peace in the family. However, this was evidence to me that the Duggars weren't in control of TLC. It is definitely the other way around.

Oh, and Shawn (because I know you read this forum), your assistant producer lied to me about my wife signing the waiver. He used that as a ploy to try to get me to sign it. She was never approached about signing it and you filmed her and used the footage without her authorization, which if I remember correctly, is AGAINST THE LAW.

Yeah, that whole thing ticked me off.

Where was I? Oh yes..

As far as Anna is concerned, she loves Josh and the whole Duggar family. Out of all the girls in the Keller family, she is the one who does sincerely want that many kids. Really. How excited is she about the media attention? I don't know. She was always the one who didn't want to be on camera, but like I said, she really does love Josh and Josh really does love her.

My mother-in-law? She is quiet and always has been. However, she loves her children like no other mother I know (and not in that over-powering protective way). She for one hates the cameras on her. She doesn't like the camera and hates to be put on the spot. But that's just who she is. Yeah, she is kind of stuck in the old fundamental, extremely conservative appearance, but she likes it. So, just let her be.

Their trailer and property? Dad Keller drives roughly 15-20 hours a week to multiple detention centers and prisons throughout Florida. Their home allows him to access these multiple locations from a central spot. Yet again, TLC did a lousy job of depicting the Kellers. They live on multiple acres and have a tennis court, swimming pool, and soccer field BEHIND the trailer, which was never shown on the shows. They have invested their lives in the ministry they are involved in, spending tens of thousands of dollars of their own money to print books and literature for those they minister to. They regularly have guests over, their children are socially capable, and adequately rounded young people. Sheltered, yes; stupid, no. They are fun and engaging. I Wouldn't have married my wife if this weren't so.

Their church? They attend a church in their area (not Buford Grove Baptist Church), and do not have a "church of the holy basement."

Just for the record: the whole Jim Bob/Josh sex talk on the day of the wedding was staged. Shawn and the camera crew told Jim Bob to get Josh and "have the talk." They said they "needed" to get it for the show. Yet more evidence of how the producer(s) are skewing this to focus it more on sex. They filmed non-stop from Thursday night (wedding rehearsal) until Friday night at the hotel. It was literally non-stop with two different crews all over the grounds of the church. They could have made it more realistic, but they chose to use the staged questions and elements that they wanted to make the show say what they wanted. But, I digress...

What about me and my wife? We are happily married and have two children. I have a solid career in technology working for a company rated as the 5th best to work for in the state of Texas. Yes, I am heavily involved in my church (an actual building not located on my property). I don't know if I will homeschool my children yet or not. No, we aren't going to have 20 kids. Yes, we will probably have one or two more. No, my wife is not pregnant. No, we don't want our own reality TV show.

Oh...and the wedding dress was MY WIFE's. My wife graciously loaned the dress to Anna. Yes, I was ticked about the train getting ripped off... And all the suits that the boys and men wore? They were purchased at a discounted rate by Dad Keller from a guy who makes suits for preachers.

I'm sure there will be some who doubt the validity of this posting. You can believe me if you want or forget it if you don't. I think I have included enough detail to convince anyone that what I am saying and who I am is true. I don't intend to follow this thread and reply to every question that comes up. That's why this post is so incredibly long. Chances are, I won't reply again. I just wanted to set the record straight in regard to the Kellers as TLC did a horrible job representing them.

Shawn: I waited until after the wedding episode to post this stuff. You're welcome. Oh, and the waiter was classic. I will give you that much.

This whole thing. It should be pinned somewhere - just to remind folks how manipulative TLC is and that what you see is not necessarily what is.

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Agree to the above. I fully believe TLC is pulling more strings that Jim Bob does.

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Agree to the above. I fully believe TLC is pulling more strings that Jim Bob does.

Yeah but JB did provide the dry humping scene

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