日治時期新式產婆與基督教的關係

Relationship between Midwife and Christianity during Japanese Occupation Period

本文探討日治時期興起的「新式產婆」行業，和臺灣基督長老教會之間的淵源與關聯，以及女信徒成為新式產婆後，對教會、家庭和自身產生之影響，指出信仰與特定職業的關係。晚清到日治初期，女信徒透過外國女醫、女宣教師和教會醫館，提早接觸到西醫式的助產術，成為接受新式助產術的第一批人。1906年，當總督府設立助產婦講習所，培養臺籍助產婦時，教會鼓勵女性信徒進入講習所接受訓練，因此早期許多臺籍助產婦出身信徒家庭，她們不僅是最早的本地助產婦，還透過助產婦例會分享接生經驗，幫忙醫界累積對臺灣婦女妊娠和生育情形的認識。1923年後，社會日漸接受新式助產，新式產婆的專業和高收入，既有利於女性信徒的個人獨立，也有助於改善教會傳道者的家庭經濟，文中舉出李招治和李秀賢兩位新式產婆作為例證。信徒之間常見產婆職業母女代間相傳，或「醫師與產婆」、「傳道者與產婆」婚配模式的現象，顯示新式產婆已成為女信徒主要的職業選項之一。不過，自1930年代起，南部教會對於牧師娘是否能擔任新式產婆，出現異議，從積極鼓勵女信徒「助產宣教」，逐漸變成擔憂女信徒的職業會妨礙宣教。具備牧師娘身分的女信徒，從日治時期起，即必須要在傳教工作和個人職涯間做出抉擇。

This article discusses the relationship between midwifery and the Presbyterian Church in Taiwan during the Japanese colonial era, the impact of female Christians taking up midwifery on the Church, their family and themselves, as well as the relationship between faith and specific occupations. From the late Qing Dynasty to the early Japanese rule, female Christians who learnt about modern midwifery through foreign female doctors, female missionaries, and church clinics became pioneers of modern midwifery in Taiwan. In 1906, Taiwan Sōtokufu launched midwifery workshops to train Taiwanese midwives. The church encouraged female believers to undergo the training, thus explaining why many early Taiwanese midwives came from Christian families. Besides being the earliest local midwives, they also shared the experience of birth delivery, and helped medical professionals accumulate knowledge about pregnancy and childbirth. After 1923, modern midwifery gradually became accepted by society. This high-income profession not only contributed to personal independence of female believers, but also improved the family income of missionaries. As illustrated by the examples of Li Zhao-zhi and Li Xiu-xian, it was common among believers for mother and daughter both becoming midwives, as well as marriages between“doctor and midwife”or“missionary and midwife,”showing that midwifery had become one of the main career options for female believers. However, from the 1930s onwards, churches in the south questioned whether the pastor’s wife could serve as a midwife or not. The church’s attitude gradually changed from actively encouraging female believers to take up“midwifery mission”to worrying that the female believers’profession would hinder their missionary work. Female pastors had faced a dilemma between missionary work and personal career since the Japanese colonial era.