This edited volume explores the intersection of spirituality with childbirth from 1800 to the present day from a comparative perspective. It illustrates how over this time period in much of the world, traditional practices, home births, and midwives have been overshadowed and undermined by male dominated obstetrics, hospitalization, and ultimately the medicalization of the birthing process itself.

Foreword by: Robbie Davis-Floyd
Afterword by: Pamela Hunt
Contributions by: Kristin Brig, Angela N. Castañeda, Claire de LaBrusse, Marianne Delaporte, Cara Delay, Andrea L. DeMaria, Gökçen B. Dinç, Anna M. Fedele, Tracy Humphrey, Sara MacLennan, Sharifah Huseinah Madihid, Morag Martin, Dunen Kaneybia Muelas Izquierdo, Tatiana Novikova, Florence Pasche Guignard, Anne Sylvie Ramelet, Camila Rangel, Angela Santamaria, Amba J. Sepie, Beth Sundstrom, Ogechukwu Ezekwem Williams