Michael Pearl’s Advice is Child Abuse (According to His Own Definition)

The very things that Pearl says are indicators of abuse are the very things Pearl says are the signs that one has mastered his techniques.

Failing to Understand the Dynamics of Abuse: Focus on the Family on Adrian Peterson and Corporal Punishment

“Most of the arguments in favor of corporal punishments are the same arguments used by child abusers to justify their abuse.”

This Present Darkness: A Review of M Dolon Hickmon’s “13:24”

“13:24 is not easy reading. It is neither uplifting nor redemptive. It will crack your heart open, set your blood on fire, and turn your screams into music. “

“Biblical” Parenting: A Review of Reb Bradley’s “Child Training Tips”

“The small collection of homeschooling families who attended Reb Bradley’s church Hope Chapel along with my family had high hopes for their children. Yet in the dozen years since, many sincere and dedicated parents have seen all their work fall apart before their very eyes as their children reached adulthood, or even earlier. I am one of many who didn’t ‘turn out right,’ yet another disappointment to the former parents and leadership of Hope Chapel.”

Being Told “The Child Will Not Die”: Heather Doney’s Story

“Recently my Mom told me something that shook me to my core. She said, ‘Your father said if you disciplined a child according to the bible, they would not die.’ Then she told me she recognized the Pearls’ book ‘To Train Up A Child.'”

To Break Down a Child: A Call for Stories about Pearl-Style Discipline

“It is time for those of us familiar with the teachings of Michael and Debi Pearl to speak up and speak against these abusive methods. It’s time to show that the damage of the Pearl’s method goes beyond just a few parents who got out of control. It’s time to show that it’s justifiable for the Pearl’s teachings to be linked to these horrible outcomes.”

The Breaking of a Child, A Story of Near Disaster

“The Pearls teach that even giving in once—just once—will set back everything that had been gained and even threaten to ruin the child forever. And yet, here was their eighteen-month-old daughter, still toddling and barely starting to lisp words, wasting away before their eyes.”