Jill Duggar Reunites with Jim Bob Despite Estrangement

Jim Bob Duggar and Jill Dillard are apparently making progress.

The lengthy estrangement between Jill and her awful parents is no secret.

Her own father banned her from the family home except on rare occasions when he gives her specific permission to enter.

Jim Bob must have given Jill his permission pretty recently, though. As you can see in the photos below, there was a bit of a family reunion over the holidays.

Derick Dillard and Jill Duggar for Shiny Happy People.
On the “Shiny Happy People” documentary, Jill Duggar tried to convey the complex emotions that she still feels towards her horrible parents. Husband Derick Dillard was by her side. (Image Credit: Amazon Prime)

Yes, that’s Jill at Jim Bob Duggar’s house

33-year-old Jill appeared in a set of massive family photos. They were not her pics, nor were they Jim Bob’s.

Instead, brother James Duggar shared pics from the infamous family’s Christmas party to Instagram.

If you look at the post below, the third image shows Jill among the massive crowd.

As any Duggar fan or critic could tell you, these photos hail from the Duggar compound. And, specifically, from Jim Bob and Michelle’s house.

In the picture of greatest interest, we see both Jill and Jim Bob seated on a couch. The same couch.

Don’t worry — Jill still has her husband, Derick, as a buffer. Her deservedly controversial husband is sitting between her and her father.

Jim Bob Duggar is one seriously messed-up dude. (Photo Credit: TLC)

Things have not been good between Jill and Jim Bob Duggar

For years, it was clear that Jill was distancing herself from Jim Bob, his infamous rules, and his egregious behavior.

Over time, Jill grew more vocal on the topic, acknowledging the estrangement and detailing her traumatic childhood.

She participated in the 2023 Shiny Happy People documentary for Prime Video. She also published her memoir, Counting The Cost, later that same year.

Jill Duggar and Derrick Dillard speak here as part of a documentaryJill Duggar and Derrick Dillard speak here as part of a documentary
Jill Duggar and Derick Dillard speak here as part of a documentary on their family. (Image Credit: Amazon Prime)

Many of the criticisms that Jill (and husband Derick) have leveled against Jim Bob relate to money more than to, say, the abusive cult in which Jill grew up.

Infamously, the Duggar family patriarch has used money to keep most of his adult children in line. But it went deeper than many critics realized.

Jill and Derick explained that her dad had presented the family’s reality career as a sort of outreach, as if they were volunteering to model their extreme fundamentalist lifestyle as some sort of public good. In reality, Jim Bob pocketed massive paychecks from TLC … and Jill and Derick had to lawyer up to get a fair cut.

Michelle and Jim Bob Duggar PicMichelle and Jim Bob Duggar Pic
Michelle and Jim Bob Duggar in happier, more innocent times. Still bigoted and kind of backwards, but less controversial for sure. (Image Credit: TLC)

What does this reunion mean?

Truth be told, all that we know from this photo is that Jill was willing to spend time around Jim Bob, and that he in turn permitted her to enter his home in this instance.

We don’t know how often she’s seeing her parents these days. This may have been a special occasion, particularly since the Duggar family are fundamentalist Christians and regard Christmas as a time of particular importance.

Jill doesn’t need to reconcile with her awful dad. But if she wants a closer relationship with him, it’s allowed. It’s a mistake, but it’s allowed.

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