Unfortunately, Dr. Phil and the Dr. Phil Show are obviously uninformed about Hutterites, Mennonites and other orders that came to the Americas to seek shelter from religious prosecution. They are not cults. Instead their lifestyles are centuries old based on their religious beliefs. The lifestyle is community and religious based. None of these groups are polygamist and do not harm their children in any way shape or form. The show seems to have a bias in favour of the mother and the secular world.
The old world orders of Mennonites, Amish, Hutterites and Dukabhours tend to isolate themselves from the mainstream for good reason. Many of these orders have had a long history of bad experiences with governments and the legal system who have trampled on their religion and their rights and interests. In North America these groups settled on land no one else wanted. When the land was made viable and exceeded yield expectations it was often taken away from them by the government and given to "white" farmers. These orders were told they couldn't farm as a community or if they did their acreage were cut back. Their childern were removed and placed into residential schools where they were not allowed to speak their native languages (predominately Germanic & Russian based languages), dress in their traditional attire or worship God in their own religious orders.
I believe the show is judging and portraying the father in context of the secular world.
I am happy to say that today the courts in Canada would take into consideration the religious context of this father and this family. They would not impose mainstream religious or lifestyle ideals on this family.
Even if the secular standards are used to detemine the outcome here - The mother was not a fit parent at the time of separation. She has is still undergoing psychiatric or psychological treatment and counselling. We were told she stable now - but how stable - only if she takes her medication? How long has she been stable?
From the bits and pieces that have been exposed to in this show, it is obvious the father has been the primary parent and was so even during the marriage. IF the "best interest of the child" standard was used in the context of what we have been provided to date - the father should continue to have primary custody of the children.
Right now I am sensing a huge bias in favour of the mother and I believe that is just wrong.
My mom was an unfit parent although she looked good on paper (stable high profile job, nice home, well behaved children). I took custody of my younger brother when he was 8 and I was 18. Despite my mother's attempts to destroy me on a personal basis and my extended families plea to return my brother to her - I refused. My mother eventually relinguished legal custody a year later. If it had gotten into a court battle and a judge had ordered me to return my brother to our mother or our father - I would have gone underground with my brother. No question in my mind about it and its now twenty-two years later. Knowing what I knew then and know now removing my brother from my mother and her new husband was the right thing to do.
Looking Back: If my mom had gotten help and a medical panel had said that her personality and parenting issues were now all resolved a year after I had removed my brother from her would I have given my brother back to her? Not a chance in hailey's world. It just wouldn't have been a healthy decision for my brother.
Although Dr. Phil may not understand this situation, I totally understand why this father has taken the steps he has taken to date. The father is not some sort of back to the earth dim-witted wingnut as the first show seemed to suggest. He is a father looking after the emotional, spiritual and mental well-being of his children from a woman in the past who has shown herself unstable and to be an unsafe parent. The children looked to be in good health and spirit when interviewed. The family's lifestyle may not accord with my own or mainstream America, but thats O.K.; it is certainly not a reason to remove them from their father.
Allison
Join Dr. Phil on an incredible journey in search of two missing girls, Allene, 13, and Mollie, 15, who were abducted by their father a year ago. The search is filled with suspense, traveling thousands of miles away from the U.S. through the jungles of a Third World country. Go inside a deeply religious community, known as the Hutterites, where the members live as if they were from a previous time: girls in bonnets and long dresses, transportation by horse and buggy and no electricity or running water. Will this global rescue mission lead to the recovery of two kidnapped children? Who has them and, more disturbingly, for what purpose? Talk about the show here.
