Sunday Saying—Wise Words from Elizabeth Esther

This week a blogging acquaintance, Elizabeth Esther was on the Anderson Cooper Show. I’m so freaking proud of her and how she is passionately speaking out against violence by addressing the issues surrounding Michael & Debi Pearl’s abusive methods of child training. 

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Elizabeth says, “Essentially, the Pearls advocate spanking a child into submission. This is, of course, morally reprehensible and abusive. However, the Pearls have a huge following and have sold hundreds of thousands of books.”  (from BlogHer)

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Recently, there was an article in the New York Times concerning the Pearls, which stated …

Debate over the Pearls’ teachings first seen on Christian Web sites, gained new intensity after the death of a third child, all allegedly at the hands of parents who kept the Pearls’ book, “To Train Up a Child,” in their homes. On Sept. 29, the parents were charged with homicide by abuse.

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Then Anderson Cooper did a show investigating Michael & Debi Pearl’s abusive methods of child training and Elizabeth was invited to the show because she has so wisely addressed the issue in a number of blog posts about them.  The show aired in most of the country this past Friday and it will air on Monday in Southern California. (see clips here)

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Many people try to justify and defend the Pearls because some children that are raised with their methods turn out okay … but Elizabeth Esther insists that,

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: until we can morally justify the spanking of infants, it is intellectually dishonest to claim Pearl’s teachings are harmless. 

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She was nervous about appearing on a national show because she didn’t know if she’d do it ‘right’, but then she realized that …

Remaining silent is worse than saying it badly. – Elizabeth Esther

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Very wise words Elizabeth!
Thank you for not remaining silent about this atrocious issue.