On birth control and being quiverfull
First, from Amy the Humble:
"Be fruitful" isn't the trump verse of the Bible. If we were looking for the trump verse, it would have to be Jesus' words to love God and love our neighbor. He already told us the main thing. (Question to myself: How well am I doing that?) How can we avoid one verse becoming the measuring stick of the condition of our hearts and the vehicle in which churches and groups are built upon?
The woman who has trusted God for the timing and spacing of her children does well. She ought to be praised. Where she fails is when she tells others exactly how they ought to do the same: all birth control is a sin. (A married woman who has produced a child has multiplied technically, were it about technicalities and not loving obedience to a good God.) Saying this isn't postmodern, wherein one just picks out the verses they especially like and then tells everyone not to judge. The Bible doesn't bind our consciences in this way, and so we shouldn't do it to one another. We live with this tension all the time in Scripture. Circumstances don't dictate theology, but yet we all make judgments and decisions based upon them. Women in China--where they forcefully abort your second child--have to decide in wisdom how to apply Scripture's words.
Read full post.
KimC posted on this as well, although from a bit of a differing angle:
If we believe that children are a blessing from God and that large families should be the norm, we need to act upon that belief regardless of whether we really think we're ready for the job. No excuses. Who among us is really ready and fully equipped to raise even one child? Can any of us really expect to succeed in this monumental task by our own strength and virtue?
Can you guarantee that you are patient enough to raise even one child? Do you think I was equipped to be the mother of this crowd when I was a newlywed? Do you think I'm the perfect model of saintly patience now?
Do you really have the financial stability to commit to providing for a child for 18 or more years? How do you know where your job or bank account will stand at this time next year? Are you sure you’ll even be alive next week?
Do you think pregnancy is always fun or easy for moms of many? Our hips and backs hurt too. Labor hurts, every time. We have gestational diabetes, ligament pain, fatigue, anemia, c-sections, morning sickness, children with handicaps, stillbirths and miscarriages. We do this joyfully because it is our service to the Lord, not because it sounds like fun.
Read full post.
I'm tempted to open up comments on this post because a lively discussion on a hot topic can be enlightening sometimes. But since I'm not suffering from a lack of things to do around here, I'll just encourage you to go read these posts and think this subject through Biblically.
And in case you're wondering where we stand on this: we believe children are a blessing from the Lord and we want to joyfully welcome as many gifts as God chooses to give us. That said, we don't consider ourselves "Quiverfull." That's not a term we've yet found in Scripture, so we prefer not to box ourselves in as such.
Labels: Hot Topics, Mothering
posted by Crystal Paine at 3:08 PM
<< Home