February 2, 2009 7:54 AM
Guerrilla Parenting #3 - Giving up birth control
Maddy, who is 15, asked me last night what guerrilla meant. I asked if she had been reading my blog and she said, no, she was doing a report on Fidel Castro. But in case anyone needs a refresher on the meaning of guerrilla it is a form of warfare where a smaller group resists the government by using unconventional tactics and counting on stealth and surprise. In guerrilla warfare this has to do with killing people. In guerrilla parenting - as I've defined it - it has to do with raising a bigger army.
In 1989, Rick and Jan Hess wrote A Full Quiver: Family Planning and the Lordship of Christ (check out the reviews - but if you want to buy a copy, I have them for for $12 including shipping - email me). In a chapter called "Guess Who's Not Coming to Dinner," they list the birth order/family size of U.S. presidents, noting that a third came from families with four or more (up to 13) kids.
More amazing, a partial list of Christian leaders:
St. Augustine - fourth of four
Henry Ward Beecher -- eighth
Dietrich Bonhoffer -- eighth
Oswald Chambers -- fourth of nine
Jonathan Edwards -- eleventh of eleven
Charles Finney -- seventh
Dwight Moody -- sixth of eight
Nate Saint -- seventh of eight
Corrie Ten Boom -- fifth
Sylvanus Crosby, Fanny's grandfather -- nineteenth of 19
John and Charles Wesley -- fourteenth and seventeenth of 19
Interesting, considering the frequent assumption that kids from big families are less intelligent or creative because their parents can't give them one-on-one -- which leads to my favorite list, Composers (also a partial list):
Bach -- eighth
Mozart -- last of seventh
Beethoven -- fifth
Schumann -- last of five
Wagner -- last of nine
Offenbach -- seventh of ten
I guess the point is that God may have great things in store for us if we trust him to receive his blessings. My later birth children include a National Merit Scholar and a couple of incredibly gifted singers. But regardless of gifts, I can't imagine life without each one of them.
Other resources:
Posted in Big families, Marriage, Mothering, Pro-Life Issues | Permalink
Comments
I'm 10 of 10 and didn't do too poorly in school - National Merit Finalist and salutatorian of my class.
Posted by: Reen | February 2, 2009 9:05 AM
I believe St. Catherine of Siena was #25 out 25 (her mom should be canonized as well!)
Posted by: Anne | February 2, 2009 10:51 AM
Hi, Barbara! I have a question that I've never seen addressed in relation to the "quiver full" issue. My husband and I have 9 children. I have had 5 c-sections and will have to have any more children by c-section as well. I would love to let God decide how many more children we will have in the few child-bearing years I have left (I turn 40 this year), but I don't know if it is wise to put myself through more major abdominal surgeries. Is this a reason to actively try and prevent pregnancy?
Posted by: Leslie | February 2, 2009 2:18 PM
I define Guerilla Mothering (my column), briefly, here:
http://www.lmharmon.com/?page_id=1065
[Note from Barbara - I first used the term Guerrilla Parenting on March 5, 2005 on this blog. Funny, but I also came the route of Guerrilla Marketing because the author J. Levinson lived in Marin and used Tripp's and my business s an example of the kind of small business advertising he was talking about.]
Posted by: Leslea M. Harmon | February 2, 2009 5:36 PM
Leslie, I'd love to have some discussion on this as well. I've only had two c-sections so far, but since we're definitely quiverful we're trying to discern what the best course of action should be in order to preserve my fertility and allow my body to safely bring our children into the world. I'd imagine that at 5 c-sections, this would be weighing even more heavily on your mind. I'd love to hear what everyone's thoughts on this matter are.
Posted by: lauren | February 2, 2009 7:44 PM
Celine Dion is #14 of 14.
Posted by: Elizabeth Esther | February 3, 2009 9:11 AM
