Co-sleeping: Why co-sleeping is endorsed in the Bible

Many parents think that co-sleeping is the irresponsible parenting choice in terms of sleeping arrangements. Most parents oppose co-sleeping for various reasons, with the main reason being that infants "need to learn how to self-soothe". The fact of the matter is that children cannot self-soothe until they indicate so, by way of shaking off the closeness of parents. Also, co-sleeping has benefits in terms of sexual abuse prevention.

Co-sleeping exists within the context of the Christian doctrine of mutual submission. Children surrender to the loving arms of parents, and parents submit by holding a child and soothing them to sleep. 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. Children are to rest securely in the sacrifice of parents, just as parent believers rest securely in the Sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Parents are to be extensions of Christ in the family home, dutifully and selflessly submitting to children just as they would to God, expecting absolutely nothing in return, with children resting safely and securely in the submission of parents. Parents are to submit to children as their enemy, from beneath yet from above, revering and fearing children as vulnerable extensions of God (see Matt. 25:31-46).

The Greek root word translated "provoke...to anger" is ερεθιζο (Latin: erethizo) and refers to damages or offenses, namely the slightest of personal offense perceived by a child, including, but not limited to, the slightest of offensive touch or speech perceived by a child, stemming from entitlement. This commandment was intended by the Apostle Paul, and understood in its original context, as a moral statute prohibiting all forms of punitive parenting, including any punishments or controlling demeanor perceived by a child. In the Old Testament, punitive parents were put to death by way of bloodletting, after punishing their children one last time. Parents who punished their children were charged with kidnapping, with "kidnapping" being defined under the Law as the slightest of damages or offenses stemming from hostage-taking - child punishment was seen in biblical times as holding your child hostage merely for things that they did wrong, thereby treating your child as a quartered slave. Paul here was lifting up the Law in order to convict a group of Greek Christians who brought their pagan custom of spanking and punishing children into the church. Paul, contrary to popular legend, was anti-spanking, and opposed any and all punishment of a child.

It is common knowledge that children aged 2-6 more often than not refuse to go to bed on their own. This is often seen as a sign of defiance, and is met with punishment from parents. However, the fact of the matter is that children that age are still too young to sleep on their own. Children up until age 6 have a primal fear of being devoured by predators when isolated in a dark room. Parents may think that this primal fear is irrational and dated, but child sexual abuse is most often committed by a father or father figure in the home, and usually when the child is isolated in a room all by themselves. Mothers in biblical times dealt with this by co-sleeping next to their children in skin-on-skin format. Then, any sexual entitlement from the father could not possibly turn into a sexual abuse incident, because the mother would defend their child tooth and nail. Usually, when the mother is right there, child predators are deterred from striking against the child, and if they try, they don't get very far - and the mother learns a lot about her husband, whom she has the right to divorce after counting the ticks and taking pictures. 

It is a myth perpetuated by pediatricians and other medical professionals that children need to learn how to self-soothe. The fact of the matter is that young children can't self-soothe on their own, and won't be able to self-soothe until they shake off the closeness of their mothers. Psychohistory shows that children naturally know when they are ready to sleep on their own, and they let their parents know when that time is. Sleep next to children until they insist on sleeping in their own bed, which should be between the ages of 6-10 for typically developing children (children with autism or ADHD may have setbacks in this regard). When children start insisting on sleeping on their own, lavishly praise and encourage such a bold feat of independence. 

Children, in biblical times, wore absolutely no clothing, at all, until they became adults. Women only wore clothing outside the home, and otherwise went in the nude, in order to serve both their husbands and their children, separately. Mothers served their children by way of providing for children nourishment and sustenance, namely attachment parenting items such as breastfeeding and skin-on-skin comfort. The core of Christian attachment parenting in the 1st Century was skin-on-skin co-sleeping, where children slept next to their mothers, and mothers protected children from all predatory threats, including the sexual entitlement of fathers. This setup helped mothers form a secure attachment with their children. The skin-to-skin contact between mothers and children lead to secure mother-child bonding. Fathers also formed a secure attachment by forming a sexual attachment to the skin-on-skin element of the mother-child bonding. Fathers imprinted on the child by way of masturbatory orgasm. The skin-on-skin setup of the co-sleeping was intended to bring out the parent attraction in fathers, which most fathers today repress. If the attraction was repressed, the mother would bring out the correcting response by co-sleeping next to their child in skin-on-skin format. True paternal closeness and nurturing is conflated with an abstinent parent attraction that is re-channeled into masturbatory fantasy.

The depraved and entitled parents who provoke their children to anger through punitive parenting will not inherit the Kingdom of God! Let them be forever 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!