Why the Bible recommends skin-to-skin closeness

Many parents think that the key to being a good parent is punishment and other controlling demeanor. This is a common mistake parents make when raising their children. The fact of the matter, however, is that the key to being a good parent is forming a secure parent-child bond. That requires skin-to-skin closeness and intimacy, and this method is not limited to infants - all children need to feel the softness of mother's skin every now and then, especially as reassurance.

The centerpiece of an attached Christian parenting relationship is Christian Agape love, as denoted by the Greek root word αγαπαο (Latin: agapao) and refers to prioritizing children first, and yourself as a parent last, in a convicted way leading to dutiful and selfless submission to children and their every vulnerable need, expecting absolutely nothing from children or others, with children resting safely and securely in the good works of parents. See Colossians 3:20-21 KJV:

Children, obey your parents in all things: for this is well pleasing unto the Lord. Fathers, provoke not your children to anger, lest they be discouraged.

The Greek root word translated "obey" is υπακουο (Latin: hupakouo) and refers to secure, vulnerable rest in the love and grace of parents. This form of respect for parents does not come from fearful compliance, but instead comes from restful trust in parents, with children feeling safe in confiding to parents anything and everything that is on their mind, including admissions of wrongdoing and non-conforming traits, expecting absolutely no punishment or reprisal in return. In this loving and affirming environment, children take after their parents, want to be like their parents, and then follow the example of parents. Children cannot be expected to follow the example of parents right away, as they are immature in terms of development, and should be expected to engage in childish and immature behaviors that may annoy parents (but likely not the child or anyone else).

The Greek root word translated "provoke...to anger" is ερεθιζο (Latin: erethizo) and refers to damages or abuse, namely child abuse in this context. Child abuse, under biblical law, at minimum, is defined as the slightest of personal offense perceived by the child, including, but not limited to, the slightest of offensive touch or speech perceived by the child, coming from entitlement. In this commandment, the Apostle Paul is lifting up the Law against punishment and controlling demeanor towards children, rebuking Greek Christian parents for bringing their pagan custom of spanking children into the church. Christian parents of Greek origin were misusing the book of Proverbs to justify their punishment habits even in the 1st Century, when this passage was written. Paul was warning parents in the Colossian church that Proverbs is simply wisdom literature - a list of wise sayings - and not a parenting manual. The rod verses in Proverbs - all seven of them - do not have to do with raising children, but instead refer to an ancient, archaic legal practice within Judaism where a father was court ordered to issue 40 minus 1 lashes as a final warning before putting a lawbreaking ADULT child to death. These harsh punishments were rare in Ancient Israel, and shunned in the Early Church - anyone who participated in capital or corporal punishment was excommunicated from the Early Christian churches. Punishment of a child was unheard of in Hebrew circles, and in the Early Church, was only a problem among Greco-Roman newcomers. In Greco-Roman society, harsh punishment of children was expected, as was the case with many European pagan societies, and the Roman Catholic Church pandered to this superstition, which was that corporal punishment purified children of impurities that they were thought to have.

Children went naked wherever they went, with women traditionally going naked in the family home, in order to serve her husband and her children, separately. Mothers served their children by providing skin-to-skin closeness and intimacy. Children snuggled with their parents in the nude, with children soaking up the rays from their mother's skin, resting safely and securely in the loving arms of mothers.

Skin-to-skin closeness and intimacy is not something limited to infants in terms of application. Children of all ages, but especially younger children, can benefit from some exposure time with mom. One way to do this is to snuggle with children as soon as you get out of the shower. Another way is to co-sleep while both of you are naked. If you co-sleep, be sure to place infants and young children on top of you and hold onto them in your arms, not beside you, so not to suffocate them. Older children should be placed beside the mother, but expect them to climb up all over you anyway at night. Some children do have hypersexual traits due to a mood disorder, in which case none of these methods are morally acceptable, particularly in the case of son-mother attractions.

If you are the mother of a child who is crying and/or ramping up, it is good to hold your child to your bosom, head first. A lot of women wear plunging necklines to serve their child first, and then maybe their husband. The idea is to expose that area and hold your child's head and body to that area to stop a crying fit within minutes, in a way that is reassuring for children. The bosom of a mother are not there for men to objectify, but there for her to nurture her children. This tactic can be used with mood disorders such as bipolar disorder that involve hypersexuality in the child.

The depraved and entitled parents who provoke children to anger will not inherit the Kingdom of God! Let them be cast into the lake of fire and burning sulfur, which is the second death prepared for Satan and his accomplices! Let them descend into the abyss which is the ever-burning Hell of fire and torment, suffering God's Wrath forever and ever! Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!