Vision Forum was an
evangelical Christian
Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being " born again", in which an individual exper ...
organization based in
San Antonio, Texas
("Cradle of Freedom")
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, map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio
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, subdivision_name = United States
, subdivision_type1= State
, subdivision_name1 = Texas
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. It was founded in 1998; its president was
Doug Phillips, son of
U.S. Constitution Party
The Constitution Party, formerly the U.S. Taxpayers' Party until 1999, is a political party in the United States that promotes a religious conservative view of the principles and intents of the United States Constitution. The party plat ...
leader
Howard Phillips. Vision Forum Ministries was a
501(c)
A 501(c) organization is a nonprofit organization in the Law of the United States#Federal law, federal law of the United States according to Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C. § 501(c)) and is one of over 29 types of nonprofit organizations exe ...
non-profit organization which was closed by its board of directors in November 2013 after Doug Phillips' confession of marital infidelity and allegations of sexual abuse.
[Ingersoll, Julie]
Doug Phillips' Biblical Patriarchy Scandal Moves to the Courts
Huffington Post
''HuffPost'' (formerly ''The Huffington Post'' until 2017 and sometimes abbreviated ''HuffPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and ...
17 June 2014. Retrieved 4 August 2016. The associated commercial operation, called Vision Forum, Inc., continued to operate until January 2014, when it was announced that it too was shutting down operations. Vision Forum advocated
for
Biblical patriarchy
Biblical patriarchy, also known as Christian patriarchy, is a set of beliefs in Reformed Evangelical Protestant Christianity concerning gender relations and their manifestations in institutions, including marriage, the family, and the home. It ...
,
creationism
Creationism is the religious belief that nature, and aspects such as the universe, Earth, life, and humans, originated with supernatural acts of divine creation. Gunn 2004, p. 9, "The ''Concise Oxford Dictionary'' says that creationism is 't ...
,
homeschooling
Homeschooling or home schooling, also known as home education or elective home education (EHE), is the education of school-aged children at home or a variety of places other than a school. Usually conducted by a parent, tutor, or an onlin ...
,
Family Integrated Church
In Christianity, a family integrated church is one in which parents and children ordinarily attend church services together; during the service of worship, children and youth stay all through church services and do not attend children's and youth m ...
es, and
Quiverfull
Quiverfull is a Christian theological position that sees large families as a blessing from God. It encourages procreation, abstaining from all forms of birth control, as well as natural family planning, and Human sterilization (surgical procedure) ...
beliefs.
Events
The organization sponsored the Christian Filmmakers Academy and the
San Antonio Independent Christian Film Festival
San Antonio Independent Christian Film Festival (SAICFF) was a film festival located in San Antonio, Texas. It was founded and organized by Doug Phillips. The ''Best of Festival'' or ''Jubilee Award'' carried a $101,000 cash prize. The festival w ...
.
In 2007, the group organized an alternative celebration of the 400th anniversary of the
founding of Jamestown, Virginia, saying that the official celebration did not give enough emphasis to the Christian perspective of the settlers.
Criticism
Vision Forum was criticized for holding views that were demeaning of women and viewed them as property. Don and Joy Veinot of
Midwest Christian Outreach Midwest Christian Outreach, Inc (MCOI), is a non-denominational, conservative evangelical organization. interpreted Vision Forum's statement on "The Tenets of Biblical Patriarchy" to imply that "women really cannot be trusted as decision makers" and "unless a daughter marries, she functionally remains pretty much the of the father until he dies."
Similar criticisms were voiced when a lawsuit was filed against Doug Phillips and Vision Forum by a woman who had worked as the Phillips family's nanny. Her suit alleged that Phillips had sexually abused her for years.
[http://extras.mysanantonio.com/pdf/2014CI05999.pdf ] Phillips acknowledged an "inappropriate relationship" but denied all charges of sexual abuse, calling them "sensationalist and suggesting that they are motivated by a desire for financial gain."
References
Bibliography
* {{cite book, first1=L. L. (Don) , last1=Veinot , first2=Joy , last2=Veinot , title=Midwest Christian Outreach Journal , url=http://www.midwestoutreach.org/Pdf%20Journals/2007/spring_2007.pdf , date=Spring 2007 , url-status=dead , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090219030311/http://www.midwestoutreach.org/Pdf%20Journals/2007/spring_2007.pdf , archive-date=2009-02-19
External links
Vision Forum Ministries– non-profit organization
Alternative education
Christian organizations based in the United States
Calvinist organizations established in the 20th century
Christian organizations established in 1998
Organizations based in San Antonio
Religious organizations disestablished in 2013