speaker of vetoed course asks for “mature view” on Christian birth

The University of São Paulo (USP) canceled last Tuesday (16) the course “Childbirth and Christian Spirituality”, which would have been held at the end of February at the School of Arts, Sciences and Humanities (Each) with lectures by seven professors and participation of up to 60 students and professionals in the areas of obstetrics and obstetric nursing.

According to the course syllabus, the objective was to reflect spirituality in its physiological stages: fetal conception; fetal development and growth; process of labor, birth and postpartum, in addition to “looking at mourning and reflecting spirituality in this process of fetal loss”. “The course will respect the Christian approach by presenting each theme with its theoretical and scientific framework”, explains the program presentation.

However, the offer was vetoed after analysis by the Culture and Extension Commission, the body responsible for university extension activities at USP. “The Commission decided to cancel the extension course ‘Childbirth and Christian Spirituality’, from the Summer program, with the objective of ensuring the maintenance of the University of São Paulo as a public and secular institution”, states the note sent by USP.

The course at USP on “Christian childbirth” was criticized by progressive movements for defending in its presentation the “traditional family” with the union between man and woman. “To have a family, paternal and maternal gametes are necessary, so the traditional family originates when there is a union of a man and a woman and the result is the conception of a new being”, says the justification for the course. “The family is the way to promote the spiritual protection of the children who will be conceived from this union”, she adds.

Nurse Denise Morais Fernandes de Paula was one of the speakers at the canceled course. In an interview with People’s Gazetteshe said that she has already taught breastfeeding courses at USP and received an invitation from the nursing coordination to participate in lectures at the five-day event at the School of Arts, Sciences and Humanities.

“There are scientific works that talk about spirituality in the patient’s healing process. So, when we see a balanced pregnant woman or a mother assisted in breastfeeding during the postpartum period, all concepts and guidelines are well received and assimilated”, he argues. “It’s not a fight or a duel. People need to have a mature and universal view of all this. Perhaps controversy is necessary to raise this issue, as there is a flaw in this approach. There are people who give a lot of importance to spirituality at a time like childbirth”, adds the speaker.

She remembers that the university itself teaches the concept that the patient is a “bio-psycho-socio-spiritual” being, so these spheres need to be worked on to care for women as a whole. “We need to do something more inclusive. If the woman in labor is from another sect, religion or has no faith at all, the team needs to know how to use this to the mother’s advantage, thinking about her and the baby’s well-being. In our case, the objective was to prepare professionals for the Christian approach. Nothing prevents new courses with other approaches”, she explains.

Paula refutes the idea of ​​antagonism between faith and science and defends care that respects the pregnant woman’s beliefs and wishes, as provided for in the legislation itself. Birth Planwhich details what women prefer, from the type of birth to the procedures that can be adopted.

“There was a little confusion and we don’t need to lose that bias. But work on inclusion for bio-psycho-socio-spiritual care, even when the person has no beliefs”, stated the nurse. The concept of a secular state seeks to defend people who do not have religious faith, as well as ensuring the individual’s right to freely express their faith.