This week’s Sunday Reading book is Becoming Free Indeed by Jinger Duggar Vuolo.
This book might seem a little different and probably more controversial than our normal Sunday Reading posts, but I hope this book review helps others.
Even if you don’t agree with the author, I think this book will give you a look into a world that will help you understand and empathize with others. We all have a story to tell, and that story can help others live their lives for the better.
Becoming Free Indeed is Jinger’s story.
Jinger Duggar Vuolo, the author of Becoming Free Indeed, describes this as a theological memoir. I think that is a great description of this book.
This book will not be for everyone, but most people will know if this is a book for them or not.
I got this book to read simply because of the topic of finding freedom from fear. Having homeschooled my kids for close to twenty years and having been in conservative Christian churches and circles, I was curious what someone like Jinger Duggar would have to say on the topic.
This book has made the New York Times best-selling list for multiple weeks. A lot of people must be able to relate to at least some of what Jinger Duggar Vuolo shares in her book.
I think she is filling a need in Christian circles. She has articulated well what many people have thought and felt.
You do not need to have grown up in the exact same circles or churches as the Duggars did though to be able to relate to this book.
If you grew up in or have attended super conservative homeschooling churches that have had a lot of man-made rules, there is a good chance that you will be able to relate to at least some of this book.
Jinger does an excellent job of explaining the journey that she took to find freedom from the fear of man-made rules. I like that she uses the term disentangling faith from fear instead of the term deconstruction. She did not lose her faith or trust in God. She detangled the truth from the error.
God does have standards. The problem is that many Christians have made rules on dress, dating, food, medicine, etc., and said that they come from the Bible when they do not.
I have seen many people who turned from Christ after growing up in churches or groups with a strict list of man-made rules. They have abandoned their faith and God altogether. They tend to see the Christian life as only a list of rules. Following man-made rules becomes almost impossible because it is driven by a fear of man and not a fear of God.
Jinger has not done that. She did not abandon her walk with God. Her story is one of finding freedom from man-made laws without losing her faith and trust in God.
Man-made rules about clothes, dating, music, food, medicine, etc. don’t change the heart: God changes the heart. Our goal is not to change the outward appearance. Our goal is for God to change the heart and then use that heart change to draw the person to Him.
Our goal should be to follow God, not to follow man. Jinger does a good job sharing her journey of doing just that.
Jinger also talks in the book about the anxiety she had when she got married and moved away from her family. She had been surrounded by people that lived the same way that her family had. Her friends and family all looked and acted like she did.
This left her unprepared for friendships and relationships with those who did not agree 100% with the way she had grown up. This is part of the book that I think a lot of homeschooled kids can relate to even if they did not grow up as strictly as the Duggars did.
She also shares about the fear of leaving a church or group that is often so prevalent in Christian churches. Tight-knit religious groups and churches can be harsh to those who leave.
They use the fear of losing friends and family to keep people from leaving. But fear is not what should keep you at a church or community. A love of Christ and a desire to serve, worship, and grow in Him should be the motive. You should never stay in a church or group out of fear, but the sad reality is that many do. I appreciate what Jinger shared about this, and I think it is something many will be able to relate to.
Jinger also did a good job of disagreeing with her parents in a respectful way. She does not agree with many of the beliefs she was raised with, but the book never felt disrespectful to her parents. In fact, I think maybe she was too gracious toward her parents.
The reality is that it was not just Bill Gothard and his teachings that influenced how Jinger was raised. It was her parents’ decision to follow those teachings and to raise their kids around the legalistic views they did.
No one is perfect, including parents. The decisions we make as parents impact our kids for good and bad. Our kids are responsible for their actions, but as parents, we are responsible for ours as well. I felt like Jinger was very gracious in how she dealt with her parents’ responsibility.
Overall I think many people will find this book helpful simply because it will keep them from feeling alone in their struggles with finding freedom from legalistic views without losing their faith in God.
You don’t have to agree with how Jinger grew up or what Jinger believes now to enjoy this book. I think this book will be insightful and helpful to many in the Christian world.