Mother’s Day

Here is the article I wrote for the cover of today’s (Mother’s Day) bulletin.

In the Church today we celebrate the Sixth Sunday of Easter but we also recognize today as Mother’s Day.  We take time each year on the second Sunday in May to honor our mothers.  On the third Sunday in June we will celebrate Father’s Day.  Somehow Mother’s Day gets a lot of attention.

Children may make mom “breakfast in bed” or give their mothers something they made in school.  Adults may buy mom a gift, flowers, or take mom out for a meal.  I think making sure mom doesn’t have to prepare meals that day is a way of recognizing that we appreciate all the meals they have prepared for us.

Of course, these are ways we honor our mothers who are still living.  But we can also remember our mothers who have passed to the eternal kingdom.  My own mother passed away three years ago.  She died the Sunday before Mother’s Day, which made for a difficult Mother’s Day that year.

Just because our mothers have passed doesn’t mean we can’t honor them anymore.  We can remember the good things they have done for us and trust in the promise of Jesus that they have received the gift of eternal life.  For our mothers who have died, we honoring them by still remembering them on this day.

Of course, as Catholics we have another mother that we honor during the month of May.  The Virgin Mary was the mother of Jesus and in John 19:25-27 Jesus gives Mary to us as Mother of the Church.

As Mother of the Church, Mary does the same for us as our earthly mothers.  Mary watches over us and prays to her son Jesus for us.  Our mothers care for us and pray for us.

Mary (with Joseph) is the one who made sure that her son Jesus learned all the religious customs of the faith.  Often, it is our mothers who make sure we complete our sacraments and learn about our faith.

It was Mary at the Wedding Feast of Cana who believed in her son.  They had run out of wine and she sent them to her (adult) son Jesus.  She knew he could take of it.  She didn’t know how, simply saying “Do whatever he tells you.”  When we are little, we listen to our mothers.  As we grow into adulthood, we become more independent.  Our mothers (and fathers) let us make decisions for ourselves.  I suspect for our parents it is both difficult to let our children make decisions for themselves as adults and yet a great reward when they make good decisions.

To all our mothers, thank you!!!

Peace, Fr. Jeff

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