Here are the 5 most appalling 'Christian' defenses of the Duggars

Since it was revealed that Josh Duggar had been accused of molestation and his reality-show star parents did little in response, there has been an expected backlash. However, some people have made some pretty strange arguments about Duggar's behavior, often invoking religion in the process. Here are 5 terrible Duggar rants.

1.) Jessa Duggar's father-in-law said that the Duggar parents should be "commended" for the way they handled the situation:

Jessa Duggar's father-in law, Michael Seewald, published a long blog post in support of the Duggar family and argued that Josh's parents did exactly what they should have. Josh "attested to the reality of his repentance and faith by living above reproach In their efforts to salvage the wreckage that these transgressions brought, and bring healing to all involved," Seewald explained. "Jim Bob and Michelle [the Duggar parents] are to be commended."

Here's the "commendable" behavior of the Duggar parents: They didn't alert the authorities to Josh's crimes for months, instead sending him to a "counseling program" that turned out to be a family friend's home remodeling business. The family has been criticized for attempting to cover up the charges.

2.) In a Facebook rant Carrie Hurd, wife of Heritage Covenant Church Pastor Patrick Hurd, said Josh Duggar was just "playing doctor" and wondered what the big deal was:

Carrie Hurd might have made the most disturbing defense of Duggar when she took to Facebook in an attempt to normalize his behavior. “When I was a kid, it was often called ‘playing doctor’, there were just as many girls initiating this kind of behavior as boys. Most of those never went on to perp horrible things," wrote Hurd. Why or how this scenario is comparable to Duggar molesting multiple girls is unclear, but Hurd is part of the same Quiverfull Christian movement as the Duggars which eschews all forms of birth control and promotes  patriarchal gender norms.

3.) "Creationist Activist" Eric Hovind Blamed Duggar's actions on evolution: “If evolution is true, then there is no absolute right and wrong. If evolution is true Josh should not have admitted his faults over a decade ago because what one evolved bag of molecules does to another bag of molecules just doesn’t really matter," explained Hovind.

Eric is the son of creationist theme park creator Kent Hovind, who is currently in jail for conspiracy and mail fraud. What does Hovind believe Duggar's punishment, for molestation, should be? "We should force him to get a job at the Family Research Counsel (whose) mission is ‘to advance faith, family and freedom in public policy and the culture from a Christian worldview.’

That would be a great punishment!”

4.) Mike Huckabee said that there was no purpose in trying to discredit Josh Duggar: The former Arkansas Governor took to Facebook to defend the Duggars quickly: "He and his family dealt with it and were honest and open about it with the victims and the authorities. No purpose whatsoever is served by those who are now trying to discredit Josh or his family by sensationalizing the story. Good people make mistakes and do regrettable and even disgusting things," wrote Huckabee,"The reason that the law protects disclosure of many actions on the part of a minor is that the society has traditionally understood something that today’s blood-thirsty media does not understand—that being a minor means that one's judgement is not mature."

Huckabee may have expected his fans to agree with his message, but the post led to vast backlash from supporters.

5.) Blaze Blogger Matt Walsh somehow manages to blame progressives:

The Duggar story is so disturbing that it's hard to imagine right-wingers using the moment to push any sort of agenda. There were some who vaguely suggested that the attacks on Duggar were hypocritical, but few tried to establish an argument that steered the focus toward progressives. Matt Walsh, a blogger at The Blaze was one of these few. "It’s always interesting to watch progressives discover sexual morality just in time to denounce a right winger, only to shed the pretense as soon as the next liberal pervert comes out of the woodwork," wrote Walsh, " They are moral opportunists. They are the actual hypocrites. This outrage is a charade. A circus. A show. A political ploy."

Sounds legit.