Bill Gothard

Who is Bill Gothard?

William W. Gothard is an American Christian minister, speaker, and writer, and the founder of the Institute in Basic Life Principles, notable for his conservative teachings. Among the several strong distinctives of his teaching have been encouragement of Bible memorization, large families, homeschooling, aversion to debt, respect for authority, and extended principles related to identity, family, education, healthcare, music, and finances.

At the height of his popularity during the 1970s, the Basic Youth Conflicts seminar with Bill Gothard was regularly filling auditoriums throughout the United States and beyond with attendance figures as large as ten thousand and more for a one-week seminar. In this way, he reached many in the evangelical community from the Baby Boomer generation during their teen years and years of young adulthood. Other seminars during this time included an advanced youth conflicts seminar and as well as seminars for pastors, physicians, and legislators. Bill Gothard has credited a large influence to his parents. His mother, Carmen Christina Gothard, was of Mexican-American descent. His father, William Gothard, Sr. was a speaker at many seminars during the early years, and held high positions at organizations that included the Gideons, Child Evangelism Fellowship, and Pacific Garden Mission in Chicago.