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Jill Dillard grew up on television. She appeared on her parents’ reality TV specials and eventual TV shows from the time she was just 13 years old. She left the series in 2017 at the age of 26. While TLC’s audience watched Jill and some of her 18 siblings grow up, get married, and journey out independently, apparently, truly growing independent wasn’t part of the plan behind the scenes. At least, it’s not what Jim Bob Duggar hoped would happen for his kids. In a recent podcast episode, Jill revealed that Jim Bob Duggar exploited an IBLP principle to ensure he still served as an”authority” figure over his children. He considered himself the gatekeeper even as they left home and started their own lives. 

The IBLP preaches an umbrella of protection 

Jill Dillard revealed that Jim Bob Duggar used a concept taken directly from the Institute of Basic Life Principles (IBLP), the controversial ministry the Duggar family belongs to, to maintain control over his adult children. The “umbrella of protection” is the concept that he appeared to cling to. According to IBLP, a virtuous family operates under an “umbrella of protection” that will ensure their safety. 

Michelle Duggar and Jim Bob Duggar stand together at the 5th Annual Values Voter Summit. Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar have become the unofficial leaders of the IBLP, accoding to a former family friend
Michelle and Jim Bob Duggar | Brendan Hoffman/Getty Images

In the “hierarchy” preached by the ultra-conservative Christian ministry, god is the most important authority, followed by the husband. The family matriarch is directly below the husband and helps to guide and protect the children. The children must obey their parents and remain under the “umbrella of protection,” lest they risk being corrupted. 

Jill called the “umbrella of protection” one of the biggest issues with the IBLP. It was one of the concepts she questioned early on in her journey to disentangle herself from the ministry. She also noted that her sister, Jinger Vuolo, also worked to “disentangle” her faith from the IBLP. She appears to have come to similar conclusions. 

Jill and her husband, Derick Dillard, are not members of the IBLP. Derick was not raised in the IBLP and was never a member. The couple remains devoutly religious, though. 

Jim Bob Duggar exploited the IBLP’s “umbrella of protection” 

According to the Duggar family’s religion, the “authority” over his daughters is passed to their husbands when they marry. Jim Bob’s sons take “authority” over their wives and create their own “umbrella of protection.” That isn’t what Jim Bob Duggar practiced, though. 

Jill Dillard and Derick Dillard appear in the Prime Video docuseries 'Shiny Happy People.'
Jill Dillard and Derick Dillard appear in the Prime Video docuseries ‘Shiny Happy People’ | Amazon Content Services LLC
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During an appearance on Trust Me, a podcast about cults, Jill revealed that Jim Bob Duggar believed he maintained authority over the entire family, even after his children were adults. She said that the belief system became “toxic” when she was attempting to make decisions with her husband. Jim Bob’s disapproval led to a family rift.

Jill also touched on the control issue in her book Counting the Cost. The bestselling author remains estranged from her father. She has a cordial relationship with her mother, Michelle Duggar. Jill has admitted in several interviews that while she still can connect with Michelle over parenting, the relationship is more distant than it once was.  

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