Church said breastmilk is bodily fluid, encouraged formula. - Page 2

[chersolly]

Why can't you nurse your baby in the church area while viewing the service?

[annettemarie]

I sent this letter both to their nursery coordinator and the general email site:

It has recently come to my attention, on a message board that I belong to, that you refused a mother her request that her baby be given a bottle of expressed breastmilk in your nursery. Shame on you. Breastmilk is God's design for babies. It is a miraculous living substance, unlike formula, a man-made dead substance that was designed by man. Shame on you for humiliating this mother, and placing her breastmilk on the same level as excrement and vomit. Shame on you for causing scandal before our Lord by thinking you know better than his Holy plan for babies. Shame on you.

Here are the links
http://www.northridgechurch.com/About/Contact.asp
And here is the contact page for the nursery administrator
http://www.northridgechurch.com/Kids/Programs/

Here are their horrible nursery guidelines:
http://www.northridgechurch.com/kids...erPolicies.asp

[ericswifey27]

My own mother admonished me for nursing my 18 month old in church (very discreetly btw!) She then told me to go outside and nurse him. So I sat on a curb in the hot hot sun in 90 degree weather, nursing my son. I should have just ignored her and nursed in church anyway. Of course my mom didn't say anything about my sister feeding her 9 month old daughter a bottle of formula at the same time. ugh. So in this case it wasn't the church complaining, but my ultra-Catholic mother. I was raised Catholic and even confirmed, but I stopped going because of people like my mom with their judgemental and misinformed attitudes. What could be more natural than breastfeeding? I just don't get why people are uncomfortable with people nursing in public.

[Plummeting]

I don't know that I would miss a church like that! Besides, they seem to have other issues in play as well. For example, when you go to the Discovery Island, Parents link, you will see that "Women only are permitted to assist children in bathrooms if needed". Ummm, can we say sexist and ill? Apparently, men are so likely to molest children that they are never, ever allowed to assist children in the restrooms. OTOH, women are NEVER guilty of child abuse, so they are the only ones who can wipe a kid's butt or pull his pants up. Seriously, any church with people who are so utterly clueless about so many things is probably not a great place to be. I would never want my child involved in any program that seems so openly convinced that men are uncontrollable child molesters. What does that teach little boys about themselves and little girls about men?

[mommyto3girls]

I saw that also and immediatly had the same thought as you.

in another part it says men are Exempt from having to change diapers and assist in the bathrooms, that makes it sound like it must be womens' work!

Either way I don't like it!

That link I posted previously to LLL has an address and phone number of the place that put out the AAP guidelines, maybe they have an updated version you could send to the church

[mommyto3girls]

To whoever said something about a nurse in, who about a pump in! We could show up with our Pumps and feed our babes EBM!

Never participated in a nurse in before, but I am only a bit over an hour away so I would if one were organized

[lactationmom]

I really thought this was a joke at first, OH MY GOODNESS!!!



Didn't read all the posts but did anyone give you this:


http://www.kellymom.com/bf/links/bf-links-religion.html

http://home.earthlink.net/%7Emcjohns...honorsgod.html

Seriously, read these and print them out-take them to that church ASAP.

[boycrazy]

The first sentence in Pastor Powell's intro letter

On behalf of our entire church family we want you to know that we are dedicated to meeting the needs of people wherever they are in life.

Sorry you had a bad experience mama, I guess that they need to have a little education. Sometimes when we have been made to feel bad or wronged it is a very hard time to feel in the educating mood. I would present you pastor with info on this if you feel you can face him.

[lactationmom]

Just sent a response to Tracey something or another.

I hope you get an apology at the very least! This needs to be brought to the attention of the local media, and maybe a lawyer. Can you say DISCRIMINATION?
Can you imagine how it must have felt to be african american during the 50's, to be told to go to another drinking fountain? This is NO different and it sucks. Parents need to stand up for themselves, we can all help with suggestions and letter writing. :

[applejuice]

Originally Posted by mrspeeper

One comment: JESUS WAS BREASTFED.

s up! I think that should be included in any letter you write to the Church.

Furthermore, I think bottle/formula feeding is a filthy, dirty habit that should only be carried out in the privacy of a bathroom, or "nursing closet". Sounds like mama abuse to me.

People have such weird hang-ups!

Get over it!

You may want to check with your state laws...in California, land of fruit and nuts, women can whip out their silicon breasts and feed their hungry babies any time they want, any where they want!!

Furthermore, LLLI was founded in 1956 in Chicago by a group of Catholic mamas at a Church picnic nursing their nurslings, and discussing how they could help other women with their newborn feeding problems the same as they had helped each other.

[BusyMommy]

I am going to miss that church. www.northridgechurch.com

Ugh I think you're much better off learning their views now than later. Sorry this happened.

[poppyqwn]

HOLY COW!!! I can't believe my eyes. Are they really serious about those volenteer guidelines?!? Why on earth would a nursing mother ever consent to giving her baby formula? Why if they can not accept EBM (which is the silliest thing I have ever heard!) can they just not call mama back to feed the baby and then go back to the service? Why put her in a "nursing closet"? WOW, I mean there is a nursing room in my church, but as I hardly ever go it isn't really become an issue for me. I would simply nurse wherever I needed to. Tho, honestly I probably would never nurse in the chapel, but I would in the lounge right outside of it, but those are my own personal hang ups. That is the craziest thing I have ever heard! UGH.....If you want me to write a letter I will be more than happy to....."nursing closet"...bottle of formula....SAFER????? ARGH! Oh the craziness! Well I guess this is what happens when a church becomes more concerned with liability than the holy spirit. When dads can't help with diapers or bathroom duty of couse you can't give a baby breast milk in a bottle, and if you insist on a "bodily fluid" to norish you child with, you better do it in the closet. Jesus wouldn't want to see it you know, I mean think modesty people! (please add the most sarcastic tone you can think of when reading the last part, I promise I typed it that way! :LOL !)

[annettemarie]

Originally Posted by applejuice

You may want to check with your state laws...in California, land of fruit and nuts, women can whip out their silicon breasts and feed their hungry babies any time they want, any where they want!!

Breastfeeding laws would apply only if they were denying her the right to nurse her baby in the church. There's no law that says lactophobic volunteers have to give your baby a bottle of EBM.

[Greensleeves]

I'm appalled--I can't believe that kind of ignorant discrimination. I read their guidelines.......I really believe that if they are going to ban bottles of breastmilk, they should also ban bottles of formula.

Also, hello? It looks like they will do diaper changes, which involves bodily substances that actually are much more likely to spread disease........?! What bizarre reasoning.

I have to say though, I was turned off just looking at the chuch's home page......with their wonderful theme: "Northridge Church: A shopping mall of spiritual opportunities". ?????

[velcromom]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...esinPublic.bmp


I suppose the church would have been offended, and asked her to leave Jesus and a bottle of (???) in the nursery or go sit in a closet.

[MyLittleWonders]

Well, I couldn't help it. I went ahead and wrote too. : Here's my letter:

I have just read on a message board that I am a member of about a mother from your church. She had brought a bottle of breastmilk to feed her daughter during services and was told that breastmilk is a "bodily fluid" and isn't allowed. To quote from your children's ministry page:
"Only bottles containing formula may be brought to the Nursery. A volunteer can not accept bottles containing breast milk, which is considered a bodily fluid."
That is completely outrageous! As a church, you should be ashamed of yourselves to put breastmilk at the same level as urine, fecal matter, blood, or vomit. There is nothing dirty or dangerous about breastmilk. In fact, as a Bible believing church, you should realize that God created Mothers to breastfeed their children, and that He created breastmilk as a perfect source of nutrition. Instead your church and those in the nursery are pushing formula, a man-made, incompetent, non-viable alternative to breastmilk on this poor mother. If you would research breastmilk a little rather than just play into the fears of people, you would realize that!
"As of this date, human milk is not (nor has it ever been) included in federal health agencies listings of body fluids governed by universal precautions for bloodborne pathogens which would mandate handling and feeding with rubber gloves or storage in a separate refrigerator as a biohazardous material. This continues to be the current policy of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). " You can read more here: http://www.lalecheleague.org/Release/daycare.html . I am so saddened that you, as representatives of God, would make a mother feel that she must sit in a "closet" to do what God designed her to do: provide the BEST nutrition to her child, and that you would deny that same child the BEST nutrition from a bottle, and instead offer to feed the child formula. By the way, have you ever read the list of ingredients on the formula can? Please, buy some, read the ingredients, mix up a glass, and drink it down. Then, do a little research into breastmilk, and change your policies.

Grr ... I cannot believe it. (And as a cute side-note. While I was writing my second ds woke and started bugging ds#1 and dh while playing legos, and I can hear my ds#1 saying to ds#2 ... "don't you want mommy milk? Really, don't you want mommy milk?" :LOL)

[annettemarie]

Great letter!

[Peppamint]

That's awful. Let us know if you'd like to write to your pastor or anything. I have some links that would be helpful that have Biblical references to a mother's responsibility to breastfeed.

I wonder- are they prepared to take the fallout if a breastfed baby suffers a reaction to formula?

[annettemarie]

Originally Posted by busybusymomma

That's awful. Let us know if you'd like to write to your pastor or anything. I have some links that would be helpful that have Biblical references to a mother's responsibility to breastfeed.

I wonder- are they prepared to take the fallout if a breastfed baby suffers a reaction to formula?

Oh, good point. Very good point.

The policy itself is stupid as all getout, but it was the offering of free "safe" formula that sent me over the edge. Do these people have any idea how many formula recalls there have been? Do they care? Are they getting some sort of kickbacks for pimping the stuff? OK, I know they probably aren't, but sheesh. I told my DH (a pastor) and he was disgusted.

[mom2tig99Nroo03]

oh puke.


please find a new church that will allow you to mother and nourish your baby the way that God intended.