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Michael and Debi Pearl believe God wants them to hit their children.

So, one could argue, do the thousands of others who’ve picked up the evangelical Christian couple’s self-published title, To Train Up a Child, a sliver of a book that has sold a remarkable 670,000 copies and been translated into at least 11 languages since it was published in 1994.

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It’s a quick, simple read, full of the kind of prescriptions distraught parents might crave as they try to instill good behaviour in their children.

But for all the good the Pearls say To Train Up a Child has created — obedient, God-fearing youngsters with strong ties of loving fellowship — American authorities say three children are dead, thanks in part to their teachings. In all three cases, police found evidence the children’s parents owned the book or received the ministry’s training resources online.

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The controversy has sparked a backlash against the couple — not only from secular society, but from Christians who fear their espousal of spanking is painting all religious parents with the same brush. Some have built websites such as WhyNotTrainAChild.com, which campaigns against the book’s teachings. A petition to get Amazon to stop selling it online had more than 6,500 signatures Friday.