Are you sitting down for this one? A religious group called the Disciples of the New Dawn wants you to know that, as far as birthing methods go, C-sections are so inferior to natural births that women who have them aren't even really giving birth. And that scar left behind that makes you smile with pride? They call it a "guilt scar."
The religious group has been posting absolutely bats**t crazy messages on Facebook—just in time for Easter!—in which it lambasts women who have either opted for C-sections or allowed their doctors to give them one. They say women who have the procedure are taking the "lazy" way out and that women who give birth naturally are "superior" and deserve respect—though what I suppose they mean to say is that they deserve more respect that those who get C-sections:
Their exact words are:
Good advice from Matriarch Graber on behalf of The Circle of Matriarchs. They have delivered many babies over the years, NATURALLY and not once has needed a C-Section or pharmaceutical toxins. Pregnancy is a beautiful thing as it is the zenith of a woman's role in a moral Christian society. If God has decided to call you home, it is not up to you or a doctor to reject Him. You may find yourself cast into the lake of fire for doing so. God's Peace.
The group is so intent on shaming women who have had C-sections that it has posted other memes that are, understandably, infuriating moms everywhere:
I try not to get into battles I can't win with folks who believe a woman's only role in life is be barefoot and pregnant and that she should reject any and all medical advancements because she was made to suffer during childbirth. The way I see it, everyone is entitled to their beliefs, even if I think they're extreme, and, as long as my government isn't creating laws that are in line with those religious beliefs, they aren't going to affect my life.
But I draw the line when religious groups try to manipulate and control people by making up facts that can be disproved by medical experts.
This line just kills their argument for me: "There is no medical need for a cesarean section."
Seriously?! Tell a mom who has been in labor for hours and who is then told her baby has wrapped the umbilical cord around his neck and could die if she doesn't have a C-section that there is no medical need for one. Deliver that "fact" to a woman whose uterus has torn during labor, who experiences placental abruption, or whose baby refuses to turn from breech position.
Is it "God's will" to just let that baby and mother suffer? Isn't it just as likely that God created humans who have, over time, developed the amazing technology and know-how to free moms and their babies from pain and avoidable death?
More from The Stir: A Love Letter to C-Section Moms (That Everyone Should Read)
Whether a woman has had an emergency C-Section or an elective one, no one has the right to tell her she isn't a "good mother" because she didn't use a midwife or doula and give birth in her bedroom. Anytime we see someone—or a group of people—speak so harshly and authoritatively, in black and white terms, about a woman, her body, or what she chooses to do with it, it should raise a major flag for us.
The intention isn't to protect women, it's to control them for their own twisted purposes. Ladies, ignore this background noise and never let anyone make you feel like anything less than a warrior for giving birth in whatever way makes it possible for you to bring life into this world.
What do you think about these ads and the idea that a C-section isn't a real birth?
Image via gregoryallen/Flickr
