Shifra and Puah, two midwives to the Israelites, were rewarded with
fruitfulness for not following the edict of their governing body, Pharoah,
who ordered them to commit infanticide at the births of Jewish boys.

Their alibi was that the Israelite women gave birth so fast that the
midwives didn't make it in time, and so could do nothing.

This story has been made into a beautiful poster and the design was
available on a t-shirt from MANA in the early 1990's.  I find it inspiring
for what it says about being true to one's conscience, even when the local
rulers demand something else.  And of course I like the p.c. portrayal of
home birth!  Bet those Israelite women didn't have any trouble knowing what
breasts were for either.

from a collection of references to BF in the Bible,
Isaiah 66.11 uses breasts as an analogy for qualities of comfort, plenty,
and satiety: 'That ye may suck, and be satisfied, with the breasts of her
consolations; that ye may milk out, and be delighted with the abundance of
her glory.'

And the other side of that coin, in Hosea 9.14: 'Give them, O Lord: what
wilt thou give?  give them a miscarrying womb and dry breasts.'

I don't find any advice about positioning, scheduling, or weaning in these
particular verses; I use them as examples of the stability of cultural
values, the first recognizing what happens in a broad context when babies
suckle freely, and the second, the terrible fate awaiting those whose
mothers have no milk for them.

Sorry if these have been cited many times before.  I love them.
Rachel Myr
Kristiansand, Norway

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