To Train Up a Child

No Greater Joy ministries is Michael Pearl's 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. The organization brings in between $1.5 and $1.7 million a year through product sales and donations[3][4] and has sold or donated over 1.5 million copies of Pearl's books, CDs, DVDs, and other materials.[3] The Pearls state that they do not receive royalties from the sales, and that the profits are used for ministry purposes.[5]

Michael Pearl (born 1945)[6] is an American independent Baptist preacher and author. After graduating with a Bachelor of Science from Mid-South Bible College, he worked with Union Mission in Memphis, Tennessee for 25 years.[7] His 2006 graphic novel Good and Evil[8] won the Independent Publishers' IPPY Award Bronze Medal in the Graphic Novel/Drama category in 2009,[9] and was a 2009 ForeWord Book Award finalist.[10] His other publications include No Greater Joy magazine,[11] Training Children to be Strong in Spirit,[12] and Created to Be His Help Meet.[13]

Pearl married his wife Debi Pearl in 1971.[14] Together they wrote To Train Up a Child, which was published in 1994.[2] As of February 2012, the Pearls have five children and eighteen grandchildren.[7] Their daughter Shoshanna Easling has said she had a wonderful childhood and that her parents never spoke to her in anger.[6] Another daughter, Rebekah Pearl Anast, has said, "I think that the fact that all five of us are very happy, balanced people with great marriages and happy kids is evidence that my parents did the right thing."[15]

The content of To Train Up a Child has been cited as advocating child abuse. The book advises parents to use objects like a quarter-inch (6 mm) diameter plastic tube to spank children and "break their will". It also mentions withholding food and putting children under a cold garden hose.[6][16] Its teachings were linked to the deaths of Sean Paddock,[17] Lydia Schatz,[18] and Hana Grace-Rose Williams.[19] In all three cases, the parents read Pearl's book and were homeschooling their children.[20] Michael Ramsey, the district attorney who prosecuted the Schatz case, investigated the Pearls' teachings and called To Train Up a Child, "an extraordinarily dangerous book for those who take it literally." "It's truly an evil book," he said.[21] Dr. Frances Chalmers, the pediatrician who examined Williams' death, said “My fear is that this book, while perhaps well intended, could easily be misinterpreted and could lead to what I consider significant abuse.” [4]

On his website, Pearl issued his official responses to the controversy over To Train Up a Child and the deaths of Hana Williams and Lydia Schatz. The responses list quotes from Pearl’s book that warn against abuse.[22][23] In an article published after Schatz's death, Pearl explained, "I laugh at my caustic critics, for our properly-spanked and trained children grow to maturity in great peace and love."[24] Pearl has also spoken to the media about the controversy, stating that the quarter-inch diameter plastic tubing he recommends in the book is "too light to cause damage to the muscle or the bone."[4][25] Pearl stated of the death of Hana Williams, “What her parents (allegedly) did is diametrically opposed to the philosophy of No Greater Joy Ministries and what is taught in the book.”[26] Pearl has stated, "The book repeatedly warns parents against abuse and emphasizes the parents' responsibility to love and properly care for their children, which includes training them for success."[16]

The Seattle Times noted that there is no mention in To Train Up a Child of the discipline used on Hana Williams except for spanking, although "spanking is clearly the heart of the book."[21] The New York Times suggests that the Williams' other discipline tactics involve Pearl’s book taken to extremes, such as Pearl's advice that "a little fasting is good training."[4] A witness in the trial reported that the Williamses followed the book's recommendations "to use a switch, cold baths, withhold food and force children outside in cold weather as punishment," all of which were used on Williams before her death.[19]

• No Greater Joy ministries