Conceive

Lately I've been studying mothers in the Bible. There are examples of women who were unable to conceive, but eventually all of them gave birth. Where are the stories of the women who never had children? Is Anna from the temple one of those women? What about the woman with the issue of blood? So often fertility is used as a spiritual marker in the Old and New Testaments. Surely there were faithful women of God who desperately wanted to give birth, but did not.

I wonder, if their stories were a part of the Bible, would infertility be less stigmatized? If pastors could stand in their pulpits on Sunday morning and share the words of childless couples who parted oceans and led their people to safety, would those unable to give birth feel comforted? Does what we say (or don't say) in sermons have the power to affect the way those who are infertile view their state?

Yes, yes it does. Pulpits can encourage and de-stigmatize. The church can increase maternal health. Positive Body Theology is of utmost importance and Sunday morning sermons are exactly where it needs to be discussed.
S

photo courtesy of MassDistraction's flickr photostream.