Saving mothers' lives: Mother's Day Toolkit

Scripture tells us that motherhood is sacred. Motherhood is an identity based on relationships that are not defined by any one variable, including childbirth. However, as we prepare to celebrate Mother’s Day, it is urgent that we recognize the perils that women and girls face as a result of pregnancy.

The facts are simple and devastating: 830 mothers die each day from pregnancy-related complications, and many of these deaths are preventable. That number is decreasing globally, but there are 13 countries where that rate is actually increasing. The U.S. is one of those countries.

We hope that you’ll use Mother’s Day as a chance to celebrate all that moms contribute to our families and congregations. We also hope you’ll use this opportunity to talk about the challenges women face in pregnancy and childbirth and encourage action to save moms’ lives.

We’ve created several resources to help you in this task. This packet includes:

• A printable bulletin insert that features excerpts from the United Methodist Book of Resolutions.
• Preaching tips to help with the sermon-writing process.
• A maternal health values sheet, a one-page document that summarizes the values set by General Conference.

Both the bulletin insert and the values sheets can be shared easily with elected officials.

In addition to this packet, we are publishing several articles about saving mothers’ lives on our website. The first was published last week and featured Dr. Kathy Hartke, an OB-GYN and United Methodist, who puts her faith into action by saving women’s lives as a doctor and as an advocate.

Visit the News & Stories section of our website for new articles every week.

Also, several bishops are currently working on a Mother’s Day pastoral letter that focuses on saving mothers’ lives. That will be available the week of Mother’s Day, so be sure to visit our website.

If you have additional questions, please contact Susan Burton.