which were in accord with Pride's ideas and various small publications and a few Quiverfull-oriented books appeared. As the Internet expanded several years later, the informal networks gradually took on more organized forms as Quiverfull adherents developed numerous Quiverfull-oriented organizations, books, electronic mailing lists, websites, and digests, most notably The Quiverfull Digest. The largely decentralized "Quiverfull" movement resulted. From their onset, Quiverfull ideas have sometimes had a polarizing effect among Christians who hold to them and Christians who are skeptical of or disagree with them. Motivations Obedience to God Quiverfull authors and adherents express their core motivation as a desire to obey God's commandments as stated in the Bible. Among these commandments, "be fruitful and multiply", "behold, children are a gift of the Lord", and passages showing God acting to open and close the womb are interpreted as giving a basis for their views. Quiverfull adherents typically maintain that their philosophy is first about an open, accepting and obedient attitude toward the possibility of bearing children. Within the view, this attitude may result in many, few or even no children, because God Himself maintains sole provenance over conception and birth. The duty of the Quiverfull adherent is only to maintain an "open willingness" to joyfully receive and not thwart however many children God chooses to bestow. Contraception in all its forms is seen as inconsistent with this attitude and is thus entirely avoided, as is abortion. Missionary effort Quiverfull's principal authors and its adherents also describe their motivation as a missionary effort to raise up many children as Christians to advance the cause of the Christian religion. Its distinguishing viewpoint is to eagerly receive children as blessings from God, eschewing all forms of contraception, including natural family planning and sterilization. Population and demography According to journalist Kathryn Joyce, writing in the magazine The Nation: "[T]he Quiverfull mission is rooted in faith, the unseen," even if "its mandate to be fruitful and multiply has tangible results as well." Others remark that Quiverfull resembles other world-denying fundamentalist movements that grow through internal reproduction and membership retention such as Orthodox Jews (particularly Haredi and Hasidic Jews), and certain Christian denominations (such as the Amish and Mennonites, and Laestadian Lutherans in Finland). Many are thriving as seculars and moderates have transitioned to below-replacement fertility. Beliefs The principal Quiverfull belief is that Christians should maintain a strongly welcoming attitude toward the possibility of bearing children.