Abstract
AbstractNew entanglements between parenting (in theory and practice), environmentalism, religion, spirituality, and secularism are at the core of the analysis presented in this article. In francophone contexts, discourses by practitioners, advocates and detractors of natural parenting contribute to associating this specific style of parenting and several of its key practices with religion and spirituality. After documenting and defining natural parenting by listing its characteristic practices and underlining its values as well as its important overlap with attachment parenting, this article examines the historically religious roots of movements linked to several practices still regarded as typical of natural parenting (natural childbirth movements, natural family planning or fertility awareness, and breastfeeding advocacy). Along with feminist and medical strands of criticism, within these highly secular contexts, the association with religion and spirituality participates in the criticism of this style of parenting which combines the key tenets of attachment parenting with a strong environmentalist agenda implemented for the most part in the domestic sphere and around women’s bodies.
Highlights
Studying Natural Parenting from a Perspective of Religious StudiesIn francophone contexts, the association of “natural parenting” with religion or spirituality[1] is not always explicit but it is, pervasive
New entanglements between parenting, environmentalism, religion, spirituality, and secularism are at the core of the analysis presented in this article
Along with feminist and medical strands of criticism, within these highly secular contexts, the association with religion and spirituality participates in the criticism of this style of parenting which combines the key tenets of attachment parenting with a strong environmentalist agenda implemented for the most part in the domestic sphere and around women’s bodies
Summary
The association of “natural parenting” with religion or spirituality[1] is not always explicit but it is, pervasive. Based on fieldwork conducted in the USA in the 1990s, before the rise of Internetbased communications and social media, her study examined the coherence of practices, discourses, and representations of what she and her informants called “natural mothering.” While building upon such previous works, this article apprehends natural parenting from a broader and more encompassing perspective in religious studies. In line with this blended methodology for data collection, this article, especially section 4, focuses on how media, especially in France, disseminate generally negative images about natural parenting that include references to religion or spirituality
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