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In time for Mothers’ Day, the Ruth Institute launched the Motherhood Resource Center. Founder and president Dr. Jennifer Roback Morse, Ph.D., said,

“This new Resource Center will be valuable to researchers, policy-makers and concerned citizens alike. Visitors will find solid research, media and firsthand stories on the enduring influence of mothers for children and society.”

Among the stories are:

• Becoming My Mother –“I take meals to neighbours because my mother did. I sit by my children’s door at night and read because she read to us.”
• Bethany’s Story — “I was physically capable of birthing my child without my mother next to me. But in that moment, I felt the strongest connection to all the women in my family line.”

The media section includes videos such as:

• Why the Marriage Crisis is Unfair to Children by Dr. Morse — “When parents decide they don’t love each other, it is children who suffer. Marriage has always been there to keep children with their parents.”
• Children Shouldn’t Sacrifice their Happiness for Ours — a conversation with Katy Faust, author of Them Before Us. “Adult desires are being prioritised above children’s rights.”

In the research section, Ruth Institute Senior Research Associate Fr. Paul Sullins summarises the scientific literature in “The Case for Mom and Dad.” Other research showing the significance of motherhood are articles describing Harry Harlow’s pathbreaking work on monkeys and motherhood, and John Bowlby’s work on attachment theory.

“Bowlby’s work showed that our attachment to parental figures, in particular mothers, plays a huge, critical role in our ability to learn, grow, and develop healthy adult relationships,” Morse said.

“Without a strong attachment, we are destined to be deeply disturbed. This insight was crucial to my work in Love and Economics: It Takes a Family to Raise a Village.”

In this book, now celebrating its 20^th anniversary of publication, Morse demonstrates why the family is an irreplaceable social institution.

Morse concluded:

“Previous generations didn’t have to be told the importance of mothers. Sadly, ours does. We need to explain to the world why the relationship of the child to his mother is so important for future success and happiness. The Ruth Institute Motherhood Resource Center will be valuable for a long time to come, providing support for the timeless truths about the value of motherhood.”