Happy Mothering Sunday!

For those of you who are not ‘POMMEYS’ (Prisoners of Mother England), this Sunday (19^th) is ‘Mothers Day’ across the British Empire (as well as most other Christian communities). It’s actually known as Mothering Sunday, and is celebrated on the fourth Sunday of Lent. However, it has no association with the American holiday in May known as Mother’s Day, or as some cynics call it, ‘Hallmark Day.’
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We spent Saturday decorating the church with hundreds of Daffodils. Luigi and Alfredo were kind enough to help us wrap tin foil around small bundles of Daff’s to hand out to the children so they may present them to their mums, and we have several boxes which we’ll use to carry our deliveries to nursing and care homes and hospital. Everything is set!
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The original translation from Latin is a derivative of ‘Refreshment’ or ‘Laetare Sunday,’ during Lent: the first words of the opening prayer of the mass are Laetare Jerusalem (Rejoice Jerusalem), and honour is given to ‘Mother Church.’ The extension to actual mothers was gradual, and became a time when children, mainly daughters, who had gone to work as domestic servants, were given a day off to visit their family.
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Now, it is a day when children give presents, flowers, and cards to their mothers. A number of years ago I re-wrote my homily about this important day. I experienced one week when I watched my staff in Moldova caring for our children and the elderly in the village where my home is based. I kept thinking about the staff that went out each morning to visit those who would otherwise never be visited, who were old, frail, and with limited days left in their lives. Those staff members of were all men – dedicated, caring, loving, and tirelessly nurturing men.
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I kept thinking about what recognition they would be receiving on this day, or any other day for that matter. None. And it is with this thought that if we take the true origins of Mothering Sunday we can easily see that it is not gender specific.
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In its truest form, it is a time to recognise those who are in the act of mothering. The English Oxford Dictionary defines ‘mothering’ as ‘to care for or protect.’ It is not gender specific. Unfortunately, as the distance between continents becomes shorter, the commercial aspects of this date overpower its broader and possibly purer origins.
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‘Mothering’ comes from carers, nurses, male parents-people who serve others, those who provide loving, nurturing care as if they were the mother to the individual. These people are so often forgotten or ignored and it is sad that due recognition is often not given. The individual who has cared for an invalid or elderly person, who needed mothering in its truest sense, may be forgotten today and at all other times.
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Most Sundays in the year churchgoers in England worship at their nearest parish or ‘daughter church.’ Centuries ago it was considered important for people to return to their home or ‘mother’ church once a year. So each year in the middle of Lent, everyone would visit the main church or Cathedral of the area.

Over time the return to the ‘mother’ church became an occasion for family reunions when children who were working away returned home. (It’s difficult to believe that less than a hundred years ago children who were as young as nine or ten would leave home to work in cities.)
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And most historians believe that it was the return to the ‘Mother’ church which led to the tradition of children, particularly those working as domestic servants, or as apprentices, being given the day off to visit their families. As they travelled along country lanes, children would collect wild flowers or violets to take to church or give to their mother as a small gift.
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The American holiday, which has sadly become so commercialised, began in 1912 when an International Mother’s Day association was formed, as a result of the efforts of a Methodist spinster, who recognised the importance of strengthening family ties. The United States Congress passed a joint resolution marking the second Sunday in May as the official ‘Mother’s Day.’ It was then proclaimed as a national holiday.
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The American date never caught on in countries where the US didn’t have strong influence or control, because within the resolution was the mandate that the American flag be displayed on all homes and government buildings in reverence to the mothers of America. It just smelled a bit too nationalist for other countries.
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No matter who it is that nurtures, cares for, supports, defends, helps and loves, they certainly deserve accolades of gratitude, praise and love. Today, above all, please don’t forget to recognise them, no matter where in the world you or they may be!

Happy Mother’s Day To You All!