"Wives MUST Be Led By a FIRM Hand" According to This Church
Sons of Patriarchy
Peter Bell & Sarah Bader
4.2 • 649 Ratings
🗓️ 2 October 2025
⏱️ 58 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
We are re-airing Season 1 with all the interest in Christian Nationalism and Doug Wilson.
This gives us the time to reformat and relaunch Sons of Patriarchy with our BIGGEST NEWS YET in 2026!
Media inquiries: https://www.sonsofpatriarchy.com/contact
Patreon: patreon.com/sonsofpatriarchy
Website: sonsofpatriarchy.com
Donate: https://donorbox.org/sons-of-patriarchy
Meet Sarah Stankorb, whose 2021 VICE article, "Inside the Church That Preaches 'Wives Need to be Led with a Firm Hand,'" broke open the floodgates. She then followed it up with Disobedient Women in 2023, which built on, and expanded upon, her original article. She talks through reporting on abuse, speaking with and listening to abuse survivors, the dynamics surrounding women who come forward with abuse stories, the environment(s) that perpetuate abuse, and much more.
Subscribe to Sarah's Substack: In Polite Company
This begins our Thursday segment, profiling dozens of abuse stories, ranging from within the CREC, throughout the Reformed world, and beyond. It's worse than you think.
Episode Resources
Disobedient Women by Sarah Stankorb
"Sons of Patriarchy" is brought to you by
Producer, Writer, Editor, and Host: Peter Bell
Original Music, Sound Design, and Mixing: https://aaronfeeneymusic.com/
Social Media: Sarah Bader
Graphic Design: Anonymous Survivors
SURVIVORS - THANK YOU, AND MAY YOU BE HEARD.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Welcome to Sons of Patriarchy. I'm your host, Peter Bell. |
| 0:04.9 | Sons of Patriarchy exists to expose the hidden power structures behind Christian nationalism. |
| 0:10.4 | Through survivor testimonies, shared storytelling, and honest expert critiques from across |
| 0:15.8 | political, theological, and cultural spectrums, we shine light on systems of abuse and authoritarian control |
| 0:23.4 | principally focused on Doug Wilson of Moscow, Idaho, and the movements he has founded and influenced, |
| 0:29.1 | as well as across reformed and conservative churches. Our goal is not just to inform, |
| 0:34.9 | how did we get here, and what do we do about it, but to spark meaningful |
| 0:39.0 | conversations in homes, faith communities, and public spaces about what a healthier, freer, and |
| 0:46.2 | more just society can look like. Together, we can dismantle harmful narratives and build communities |
| 0:53.2 | of mutual respect and diversity. |
| 0:56.0 | Sons of Patriarchy aims to do what Doug cannot. We will unite people. We do not demand you be like us. |
| 1:04.0 | We meet you where you are. And while you may not always agree with us, we hope we can agree on this. |
| 1:12.9 | Churches should be safe. |
| 1:19.7 | You can find us on all podcasting platforms as well as YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and X, |
| 1:22.1 | and Sons of Patriarchy.com. |
| 1:29.9 | Add free episodes, bonus content, listening a week ahead of time on both audio and video, |
| 1:36.2 | monthly Ask Us Anything Specials and many more perks are available across five membership levels at patreon.com slash Sons of Patriarchy. Much of the same is available via Apple Podcast subscriptions for $4.99 a month. |
| 1:47.9 | You can give to this work directly at donorbox.com slash sons dash of dash patriarchy. |
| 1:56.6 | Exclusive Sons of Patriarchy merch is available at Sonsopatriarchy.com slash merch. |
| 2:02.7 | If you'd like to get a hold of us, desire to interview either myself or co-producer Sarah Bader, |
| 2:09.3 | or your news media agency looking for information on Christian nationalism, |
| 2:14.4 | Patriarchy Doug Wilson, or anything else we covered in the series, |
... |
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