On Mother’s Day we are ever mindful of those for whom today brings pain. In particular we think of children who have lost their mother’s, mothers who have lost children, or those from painful family backgrounds. Yet motherhood is a good gift of God, and it is right to honour it.
To begin with, our mothers gave birth to us. While it is an enormous privilege to have a human being growing inside you, it is also difficult and dangerous. Throughout history, and still today in the developing world, bearing children is a risk. Thank you for your courage mothers!
Second, mothers bring a wonderful nurturing side that small children in particular need. Without discounting fathers (DO NOT leave parenting up to the mother!), we cannot overstate the importance of things like breastfeeding, hugs and words of love and understanding. Thank you mothers for your gentle love and care.
Mothers also help prepare their children for the real world. Parents can fail to prepare their children for adulthood by things like (i) picking up the pieces when they drop the ball, rather than letting them take responsibility (ii) fighting battles they can fight themselves, or (iii) allowing them to put off growing up and moving out for too long. Thank you mothers for your emotional strength to push us into adulthood.
Yet most importantly, mothers (and fathers) bring us up in the instruction of the Lord. When speaking of Timothy’s faith, the Apostle Paul warmly recalls how Timothy’s faith was passed down from his grandmother Lois, through his mother Eunice, to Timothy. So most importantly, thank you mothers for our faith.
Brendan McLaughlin
