toward a theology of new motherhood in the life of the church

“Come as you are.”

“Everyone welcome.”

These types of phrases echo constantly in our virtual and physical church entryways - but is there something a bit hollow behind that echo?

When I became a mother, I was surprised to find that I no longer fit as neatly into the life of my church at the time as I had been used to. I began to wonder why, for me, attending church looked and felt so little like an encounter with the Jesus who said “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering,” and “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them.” (I began to realize, too, that my previous largely-positive experience had been influenced by my privileged identities as a straight white cis woman, and I want to offer my gratitude to the many friends, authors, and activists who have taught me and helped me process this portion so far.)

My experience has been that the present-day white evangelical church has a tragically poorly developed theology of new motherhood (and of many other things, but that’s a discussion for another time). Therefore, I want to begin an attempt to, well, develop it. I want to try to answer some of the following kinds of questions:

• What does God have to say about early motherhood?

• What have been the norms around new mothers’ participation in the life of the church throughout church history? In the global church?

• What practices of the church are most conducive to new moms’ flourishing? What practices harm them? How do we know?

• How can the church be more inclusive of and empowering to new mothers?

As I begin this project, I would welcome any resources or recommendations of others who have investigated these questions. Popular books, academic papers, personal stories, the patristics - I’ll take them all! I would also love to hear what parts of the questions above most resonate with you or feel most urgent to you. Thanks for reading!

Up next: What exactly do I mean by “new motherhood”, and why does it matter in the life of the church?