Monday, March 3, 2025

Righteous pampering: Why God wants parents to pamper and baby their children

Many parents today oppose the concept of pampering and babying their children. This is a common attitude amongst American parents. Most American parents believe that children need a firm hand. However, when using the context as a guidepost, parents are to pamper and baby their children.

Righteous pampering is a part of the Christian doctrine of mutual submission, with the burden of proof falling squarely onto 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 submission of parents. This word ultimately refers to a secure attachment between parent and children in the family home. This secure attachment comes from parent submission, where parents are to submit to their children just as they would to God, in dutiful and selfless submission to children, from beneath yet from above, expecting absolutely nothing in return. See also Matt. 22:35-40, 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 was understood in its original context, as a moral statute prohibiting all forms of punitive parenting, including, but not limited to, any punishments, reprimands, or other controlling demeanor towards children. In the Old Testament, punitive parents were put to death by way of bloodletting, after punishing their children one last time. The 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 Christian parents 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 in his secular writings. Paul may not have gotten along with the women of the church, but he sure loved children, and even took in a few orphaned children during his time as a deacon.

Righteous pampering isn't just any old pampering, but is a certain specific form of pampering and babying children, while using the context as a guidepost. For the first 6 years of childhood, children were in constant closeness to mothers, meaning that wherever the mother went, so did her child. For the first 2 years of childhood, children were constantly held by mothers, either in her loving arms, or else on mom's back in a papoose bag when her hands were full. Between ages 2-6, children ranged next to mothers, following mom from room to room, not letting mom out of their line of sight, morbidly fearing that mom would "go away and never come back". Whenever children cried, mothers cooed at children before picking them up, and from there, she diagnosed the need and met that need. Maybe the child was tired. Maybe the child was hungry. Maybe the child needed mom's milk. Maybe the child needed mom, period. Whenever children under age 6 were out and about with mothers, mom wrapped up the child next to her bosom in swaddling blankets, with the swaddling blankets - and the child with them - being tucked underneath the loose-fitting, revealing dress worn by mothers that resembled an apron. Come nightfall, children co-slept next to mothers in skin-on-skin format, until the onset of puberty, which was when most children wanted their own place to sleep. Children in biblical times went naked wherever they went, with mothers also going naked within the confines of the family home. This birth nudity setup helped facilitate easy skin-on-skin closeness, with this skin-on-skin contact happening even when the child was simply picked up. 

After the child turned age 6, they were allowed to play freely, naked. Older children in biblical times engaged in wet and messy play. Children past age 6 explored the terrain, venturing farther and farther from home, coming back all in a mess. However, children had to check in with mom first, and tell her where they were going. Come evening, children were called by name - one by one - and were washed up before being served dinner on a porcelain plate.

Children under age 6 were well protected, albeit in a sheltered way. This was because children under age 6 did not appreciate the dangers that existed outside. In biblical times, the dangers that existed included venomous snakes and scorpions, with there not being any antivenom then. However, even today, there exist dangers outside the home, namely busy streets and would-be kidnappers. 

The depraved and entitled parents who provoke their children to anger through punitive parenting will not inherit the Kingdom of God! Let them be cast forever 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 day and night forever and ever! Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!

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Righteous pampering: Why God wants parents to pamper and baby their children

Many parents today oppose the concept of pampering and babying their children. This is a common attitude amongst American parents. Most Amer...