Mothering as a Spiritual Journey

by Ann Tremaine Linthorst
New York: Crossroad, 1993.

Reviewed by Patrice Fagnant-MacArthur

"Being a mother is a funny thing: you cry when the children arrive, you cry when they leave, and you cry a lot in between." Ann Tremaine Linthorst is a licensed marriage and family counselor with a Master of Divinity degree speaking from the experience of raising two sons of her own in Mothering as a Spiritual Journey (Crossroad, 1993). Linthorst presents motherhood as a series of crises: the identity crisis of becoming a mother, the crisis of the toddler years as a child develops his own will, the crisis of letting go during the school years when a child begins to have a life of his own, the crisis of the teen years as a child discovers his own purpose in life, and the crisis of having adult children who leave the nest. Each crisis is an opportunity of growth, a chance to see God at work in our lives and the lives of our children.

Throughout this book, Linthorst maintains that God is the true parent of our children. In her own life, she truly "let go and let God" in the raising of her sons. Not all will be comfortable with such a lack of personal responsibility in parenting, although it certainly seems to have been effective in her family. Regardless, this book has much to offer in terms of encouraging mothers to rely on God, to see God at work in their children, and to grow in their spiritual journey as they grow in their maternal roles.

© Spiritual Woman Press, 2005. All rights reserved.