God and Reproductive Stories

AM Psalm 75, 76 • PM Psalm 23, 27
Ecclus. 51:1-12 • Rev. 18:1-14 • Luke 14:1-11

Everyone has a faith story, even if they don’t claim a particular religion. Everyone has a reproductive story, even if they have never had children. Our goal is to create faith communities where people can share their faith and reproductive story free from shame, judgment, and stigma.

Psalm 23 promises that God, our shepherd, is with us every step of the way in our faith and reproductive journey. I read this from the perspective of someone terminating a pregnancy. People who decide to terminate a pregnancy do so for a multitude of reasons, one of which is choosing their own life. God is with them, restoring them to the path they have decided for their life.

Others might experience the valley of the shadow of death in their reproductive lives. Infertility, miscarriage, fetal anomaly, legal, medical or physical obstacles to creating the family you want, danger to a loved one’s life, loss of a child at any age, maternal mortality, navigating the healthcare, insurance, adoption, or foster care systems. These are big, complex turns in our reproductive stories that we may not share outside of a close inner circle. But know that God is with you, God sees you, God knows you, God loves you through all of the scary stuff. Our accompanying shepherd comforts and consoles you in all of your valleys.

This Psalm ends with covenant blessings, not curses. As God’s sheep, we experience joy and suffering, hope and lament, and plenty of things in between and all at the same time. Still, God pours blessings on us, and we dwell in the house of God for our entire lives. You can get through the hard times. You can do the hard things because you are not alone.

Written by Angela Tyler-Williams

...who regularly talks about her faith and reproductive story as the Co-Director for Movement Building SACReD (Spiritual Alliance of Communities for Reproductive Dignity).