What MommyMidwife didn’t mention is that the Quiverfull way is more than choosing to reject birth control and having as many children “as the Lord blesses” a couple with. It’s a patriarchal lifestyle of seclusion from modern society. The husband/father is the prime authority figure and the wife/mother/daughters must submit to his authority. They homeschool practically universally, for religious reasons, and usually birth at home. The father is typically self-employed, running a family business, and homesteading or living off the land is not uncommon especially if the family lives in a rural area. College education seems to be looked down upon, especially for the daughters. Daughters are expected to be married off soon after the completion of their basic education by a young “Godly” man who “asks her hand” in marriage and has the approval of her father. The females dress “modestly” which means no pants or shorts but long dresses or skirts, and they keep their hair long. A lot of these families do home church as well, probably because they have trouble fitting in a modern congregation, even if it’s Evangelical. Those that do attend a church seem to be of the Fundamentalist persuasion, though there are Quiverfull adherents that hail from across the board of Christianity. It is a backlash against feminism towards the other extreme, and seems like a lifestyle that is at odds with, and deliberately so, the “seven mountains” of (modern) culture: arts and entertainment, business, education, family, government, media, and religion.

Pioneers of the movement are authors Mary Pride (The Way Home: Beyond Feminism, Back to Reality), Nancy Campbell of the Above Rubies ministry (Be Fruitful and Multiply), and Rick and Jan Hess (A Full Quiver: Family Planning and the Lordship of Christ). Website resources for the movement are Above Rubies and David and Suzanne Bortel’s Quiverfull. If you read the articles on the Articles page and look at the offerings in the Books and Resources page of the Quiverfull site you’ll gain a good understanding of what the Quiverfull movement is about.

Of course the most well-known Quiverfull family is the Duggar family of Discovery Channel/TLC fame.

I’m really perplexed by the very Old-Testament-style legalism of this movement and its twisting of Scripture to justify its purpose. Yes, children are a blessing from the Lord, but they’re also a tremendous responsibility. The New Testament also teaches the virtues of not marrying (and hence not having children) for the sake of the Kingdom of God – as one can totally devote himself or herself to the Lord’s work. Some will be called to a life of celibacy. Jesus said in Matthew 19:12 (NKJV):

For there are eunuchs who were born thus from their mother’s womb, and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven’s sake. He who is able to accept it, let him accept it.

Here’s what 1 Corinthians 7 has to say (NLT):

1 Now regarding the questions you asked in your letter. Yes, it is good to live a celibate life. 2 But because there is so much sexual immorality, each man should have his own wife, and each woman should have her own husband.

3 The husband should fulfill his wife’s sexual needs, and the wife should fulfill her husband’s needs. 4 The wife gives authority over her body to her husband, and the husband gives authority over his body to his wife.

5 Do not deprive each other of sexual relations, unless you both agree to refrain from sexual intimacy for a limited time so you can give yourselves more completely to prayer. Afterward, you should come together again so that Satan won’t be able to tempt you because of your lack of self-control. 6 I say this as a concession, not as a command. 7 But I wish everyone were single, just as I am. But God gives to some the gift of marriage, and to others the gift of singleness.

8 So I say to those who aren’t married and to widows—it’s better to stay unmarried, just as I am. 9 But if they can’t control themselves, they should go ahead and marry. It’s better to marry than to burn with lust.

and…

25 Now regarding your question about the young women who are not yet married. I do not have a command from the Lord for them. But the Lord in his mercy has given me wisdom that can be trusted, and I will share it with you. 26 Because of the present crisis, I think it is best to remain as you are. 27 If you have a wife, do not seek to end the marriage. If you do not have a wife, do not seek to get married. 28 But if you do get married, it is not a sin. And if a young woman gets married, it is not a sin. However, those who get married at this time will have troubles, and I am trying to spare you those problems.

29 But let me say this, dear brothers and sisters: The time that remains is very short. So from now on, those with wives should not focus only on their marriage. 30 Those who weep or who rejoice or who buy things should not be absorbed by their weeping or their joy or their possessions. 31 Those who use the things of the world should not become attached to them. For this world as we know it will soon pass away.

32 I want you to be free from the concerns of this life. An unmarried man can spend his time doing the Lord’s work and thinking how to please him. 33 But a married man has to think about his earthly responsibilities and how to please his wife. 34 His interests are divided. In the same way, a woman who is no longer married or has never been married can be devoted to the Lord and holy in body and in spirit. But a married woman has to think about her earthly responsibilities and how to please her husband. 35 I am saying this for your benefit, not to place restrictions on you. I want you to do whatever will help you serve the Lord best, with as few distractions as possible.

36 But if a man thinks that he’s treating his fiancée improperly and will inevitably give in to his passion, let him marry her as he wishes. It is not a sin. 37 But if he has decided firmly not to marry and there is no urgency and he can control his passion, he does well not to marry. 38 So the person who marries his fiancée does well, and the person who doesn’t marry does even better.

39 A wife is bound to her husband as long as he lives. If her husband dies, she is free to marry anyone she wishes, but only if he loves the Lord. 40 But in my opinion it would be better for her to stay single, and I think I am giving you counsel from God’s Spirit when I say this.

I’m going to blog on this some more, but one post is too long so stay tuned. I’m going to address more of the Quiverfull movement’s sectarianism (some might call it cultishness), unbalanced views of patriarchy and female submissiveness, a strange take on growing the Kingdom of God and hints of racism, whether intended or not.

But I have many more milestones to look forward to. The twins sleeping in big girl beds, then going to the potty on their own. My son and the twins riding their bikes without training wheels. Each of them reading to me instead of me reading to them. More days of no front teeth. Watching them become their own persons. Teaching them about Jesus and the ways of the Lord, then watching them grow in faith. Then PUBERTY and the TEENAGE years (well, I’m not sure I look forward to that period, but I’m hopeful that time in their upbringing will ultimately prove to be very rewarding and we’ll all look back on those years with fondness).

Controversial Motrin Moms Commercial

This commercial ticked off a lot of baby-wearing moms, creating quite a buzz in the blogosphere, lots of video responses on YouTube, and enough complaints to McNeil that the company issued this statement on the Motrin website:

I’m actually one of the vocal minority that thought the furor was much ado about nothing. You’d think that McNeil was undermining the fabric of American families by suggesting baby carriers can hurt. I don’t watch hardly any TV at all because it’s like feeding your brain a steady diet of junk food, so I would have never known about this commerical except I was alerted to it in an e-mail. After seeing it I actually thought the commercial, though kind of tacky in its narrative, was funny, because I can relate to it. I tried a sling with my oldest when she was a few weeks old (she’s 5 now) and didn’t like it, and neither did she. I also found taking the baby out of a carseat, into the sling/carrier, and back in the carseat when out and about to be a hassle. So I quickly abandoned the idea. Three more kids later and I go around looking tired and crazy most all the time too. Now I will acknowledge that if you’re using a sling/carrier and feel like you need to take Motrin, you need to adjust it or get another that fits closer to you and is better supported to take the strain off and relieve the pain, but I bet there are some moms out there that can’t wear any kind of sling or carrier without pain, probably because they already have neck, back and/or shoulder issues. I would hope they wouldn’t take Motrin and wear their babies anyway just so they look or feel like a “real mom.” They shouldn’t be made to feel guilty if they have to stop.

I wonder how the Greatest Generation got along without being worn by their mommas?

I must say, however, that my little guy has come a long way from 8-12 mos. ago, when he was taking off his diaper after pooping in it and making “art” while in his crib during naptime, whenever he was awake and bored in there. Zip-up blanket sleepers or onesies were enough to dissuade him, and he was over it by the time he moved into a real bed at about 2-1/2 yrs.

As for my 23mo twin girls; well, for the last 2-3 mos. they’ve both been prone to taking their diapers and any clothing over them off. After a while they figured out how to get a diaper off through the leg of a onesie and then I found they will zip their way out of a blanket sleeper, so about a week ago my hubby suggested tape. We had some wide masking tape laying around, and I started putting a strip across the front of their diapers over the tabs. Problem solved! I can get the diapers off by lifting the bottom edge of the tape, putting my finger between the overlapped velcro tabs underneath, and tearing the tape vertically over them so I can open both tabs. I swear I was about to go batty over changing crib bedding 2x a day and outfits as much as 3x each a day.