ABSTRACT
Nigerian churches have strict codes of conduct for women to follow; women are to be virgins until marriage and premarital sex is understood as abhorrent. Corporeal evidence of sexual activity, such as pregnancy, is subject to grave scrutiny and censure. If an unmarried churchwoman becomes pregnant, the culture of support is replaced with a trajectory of penance, spanning from the young woman to other members of her family, particularly her mother. Faced with the likelihood of being punished alongside their daughters, mothers resort to diverse ways of managing the situation, to condense and/or confiscate the stigma. This chapter explores how control and power operate between women and the impact of status of authority accorded different women within church communities. From a feminist perspective, it maps negative attitudes of women in Nigerian churches towards pregnant unmarried young women and their mothers. It looks at why and how a young woman and her mother are stigmatised by their church when the young woman is pregnant outside of marriage. While emphasising the impact of women’s pursuit of ideal femininity, this chapter facilitates an understanding of why women in faith communities tend to police the sexual choices of other women.
