Anna & Jessa Bare Baby Bumps As Josh Duggar’s Molestation ‘Cleansing’ Revealed: Can ’19 Kids’ Survive? [Video]

As Anna Duggar waits for her fourth child to be born, the 19 Kids And Counting family is revealing that this is the first time that she’s been past her due date. The wife of Josh Duggar, who recently found himself under fire after revelations that he had molested five underage girls including his sisters, compared her baby bump with sister-in-law Jessa Duggar, reported E! News.

Anna and Josh’s children, Mackynzie, 5; Michael, 4; and Marcus, 2; were born prior to their due dates. Jim Bob Duggar and Michelle Duggar requested prayers for both Anna and Jessa.

“Pretty soon we will get to kiss the sweet face of another Duggar grandbaby!!!” wrote the matriarch and patriarch of the Duggar clan on Facebook.

Jessa’s baby is due around Thanksgiving, and she and her husband, Ben Seewald, are having their first child. They haven’t revealed if it’s a boy or a girl. However, Anna and Josh will be welcoming their second daughter.

Ben and Jessa shared the latest news about their baby bump on their blog.

“Growing steadily and Mommy has been feeling some little, yet strong kicks! We recently had an ultrasound, but aren’t revealing our firstborn’s gender yet. Can’t wait to welcome this blessing from God into the world!”

As the Duggars keep their Facebook page and blog positive, Josh Duggar remains as a contentious topic among 19 Kids And Counting fans, some of whom feel that the Duggar family were hypocritical in criticizing others. Now, sources are revealing precisely what Jim Bob and Michelle did when Josh told them about the molestation of the underage girls, including some of his sisters, reported the Daily Mail.

After revealing that he sexually abused a baby-sitter as well as several of his sisters, 15-year-old Josh spent time at a training center owned by a religious organization called the Institute in Basic Life Principles (IBLP).

Founder Bill Gothard described Josh as “cleansed” through doing carpentry, getting counseling, and taking classes. Called a cult by some who have left the group, IBLP also came under attack when Gothard was hit by claims that he sexually harassed many women.

“Joshua traces his salvation to his time at the IBLP training center in Little Rock. Once he became a Christian his conscience became more delicate and he wanted to follow and please the Lord. It was a turning point in his life. The incident happened 12 years ago and since then Joshua has lived an honorable life, that speaks for itself, he certainly learnt his lesson and now he will have a whole new respect for young ladies,” said Gothard.

And the founder of the group defended the process followed by the Duggars when they discovered that Josh had molested four sisters as well as the baby sitter.

“First of all when that [the sexual abuse] came up his father and mother came to me and I, number one, said he [Josh] really should report it to the police, which he did. Number two that he should get away from the home there and they sent him to a godly mentor in Little Rock and it was there when he really became a Christian. Josh was put to work helping with the renovations and learning about carpentry and on the side being instructed spiritually.”

As for the backlash against the Duggars after the news of the molestation spread, Gothard feels that it’s not justified.

“Josh acknowledges it, he tells his parents and they tell the sisters and that was the first time they have learned about it. Same thing with the babysitter, she didn’t know about it,” defended the religious leader.

Moreover, Gothard argued that the way it was portrayed in the media is erroneous.

“This is really quite different to what you think. It has been overblown, it is not like he is a sexual predator, he was a teenage boy. What he did, touching over the clothing, is not nearly what you think it is. It was wrong, but unfortunately there’s a lot of this going on in many families today.”

As the Inquisitr reported, Anna Duggar revealed that she did know about Josh prior to their marriage.

It now turns out that she was aware of exactly what had happened two years prior to Josh’s marriage proposal.

“I was surprised at his openness and humility and at the same time didn’t know why he was sharing it. For Josh, he wanted not just me but my parents to know who he really was – even very difficult past mistakes.”

In the wake of the molestation scandal, TLC pulled reruns of the show but has not yet cancelled 19 Kids And Counting. And because of its popularity, some argue that the network won’t cancel it but will reboot it, reported Entertainment Weekly.

Advertisers have, for now, left in droves. But 19 Kids ranks as TLC’s most popular reality TV show.

“The season just ended,” pointed out one inside source. “So I guess they’ll just ride it out and see.”

In the past, 19 Kids raked in $25 million in ad revenue while paying the Duggar family $40,000 per episode.

[Image via Duggar Family Facebook]