Mother's Day - Mothers for our Days

May 15, 2024

As we celebrated Mother's Day this year (2024), I felt the world is becoming better for women? There are already at least 3 days dedicated to them - March 8 Women's Day, 2nd Sunday of May as Mother's Day and October 11th as Girl Child's day! Besides, the world nations have agreed upon a goal to ensure equality among the genders - SDG 5. I feel the world is becoming a better place for all these. 

I had the occasion to reflect on mothering and mothers.  Sometimes children are described as 'fatherless' at birth - for the conventional dominant religious morality it is derogatory; though, some modern mothers have become fearless to bring a child with such an eponym.  However, there is hardly any child coming to the planet as motherless - but for the very tragic situation of a mother dying in giving birth.  Mother is the basic connect that everyone has to life and the rest of the world. 

I read that there is (or was) a Western Christian tradition named 'Mothering Day' celebrated during the lenten season (fourth Sunday), with clerics being encouraged to visit their mother churches. Or perhaps, more in the sense of the faith mothering happening in the Church and a call to return that mother.  

Mother's Day is of a later origin, specifically American, where Anna Jarvis+ (1864-1948) initiated the first Mother's Day worship at Andrew's Methodist Episcopalian Church in Grafton, West Virginia in 1907, in memory of her mother Ann Jarvis who died in 1905. Her inspiration for the same was Ann Reeves Jarvis*, who closed one of her Sunday School classes in 1876, attended by the little Anna, in 1876: I hope and pray that someone, sometime, will found a memorial mothers day commemorating her for the matchless service she renders to humanity in every field of life. She is entitled to it. 

It was a 2-year campaign that led to this 'holiday' being thus celebrated with her conviction that a mother is "the person who has done more for you than anyone in the world". Later on, it came to be recognised as a nationally observed holiday falling on the second Sunday of May. I can recall Mother's Day becoming popular in our circles just around the end of the last century. 

Interestingly, my research points to the fact, that Anna Jarvis herself was not a mother! The celebration had a motif of working for peace - against war, where many mothers lose their sons (in those times, other than the civilians dying in war; in the present times mothers lose their sons and daughters, their children) in war. This is worth emphasising every day, especially on Mother's day!  However, she is said to have been camapaigning against the mother's day celebrations which had been taken over by the market forces, making it a big commercial venture. 

My prayer would be the kusappa before the prayer of elevation in the Syro Malabar Liturgy marking the beginning of the rites of reconciliation: '...May your peace and justice reign...Eradicate all wars and conflicts. In humility and fear of God, may we live a life of peace and joy...'

The determined effort of Anna Jarvis in mothering the mother's day is inspirational. 

On Mother's day - I salute my beloved Mom and all other moms - my grandmas on both sides of the family - dearest Ummamma, who died peacefully at the age of 79, and dearest Vellyammachi who died after a few months of illness (cancer) at the age of 85! My aunts, who were like mother to all of us - only two of them remaining on this planet now! My beloved sisters and cousin sisters - all of whom are now mothers and grand-mothers; most of them having lived a modern life of managing the homefront (usually with minimum external assistance) and their career front (except four of them, all in the field of education)! The many moms of Perumanur, contemporaries of my mother, mothers of my friends, with many of whom as a schoolboy, I had great freedom. I remember the nuns of St. Thomas convent, many of whom without having given birth to any child of their own, had been mothers to very many of Thevara - Perumanur neighbourhood. I remember my colleagues for the past 27 years - at Rajagiri College of Social Sciences (including its amazing extension centres), at Sacred Heart, Kochi, at Rajagiri Public School, Doha and at Sacred Heart, Sitapur, UP! I also salute very many of my students who have become mothers and are guiding their families.  And, I greet the mothers of all my students - especially those of Rajagiri Public School, Doha and Sacred Heart Degree College, Sitapur! 

On this occasion, I think it is important that we recognize the unimaginably stupendous tasks one accomplishes as a mother! This is a great great service to the nation, to the whole of human race!  I would go with Alfred Marshall that her tasks are to be valued in money terms, added to the GNI/GDP, and all those who need a support to run a home, to be remunerated by the state for the fundamental task of citizen building! When I addressed the mothers gathered at Rajagiri Public school on the occasion, I specially remembered our teachers - especially those in the smaller classes, who stand in for the mothers for almost 5 to 6 most active hours of the day, year after year, with every changing batch!! Salute indeed they deserve! 

I would like to call upon all of us to recognize our Common Mother - Mother India, whom we should take care of as our the mother of all those who live on this land, we honour as Bharatmata!  While not being blind to its limitations, our efforts should be in the direction of preserving what is in her that would add to the great common good - e.g., the culture of 'integrated health' Yoga.  A very important theme of our cultural heritage is a dream where the entire universe is found to be a common nest, read home (yatra sarva vishwam bhavati eka nidam); the 2023 leadership of our nation has doubly empahsised it, at least as a propaganda, by reiterating the ancient axiom of : 'vasudhaiva kutumbakam' - the planet itself is our family! 

This leads us to consider and promote the idea of Earth as our Mother, this planet as our 'Common Home', to be shared by all in a equitable fashion, consumed for growth in a responsible fashion, with a tinge of sacrifice (tena tyaktena  bhunjitha. Isa Up. 1; SDG 12) bearing future generations in mind.  The Gaian thinking where Earth was seen as the Mother of All (gods) promotes a spirit that promotes human dependence on and protection of the Earth mother. From this point of view, I am afraid, the world is not really becoming a better place - it is becoming increasingly despoiled, torn and exploited. The natural fallout of such consideration is the immediate stoppage of wars and conflicts; and seeking non-violent conflict resolutions - that is being motherly! This calls for greater dialogue, listening, patience - of which mothers usually are examples, and Bhumimata, otherwise called kshama (patience, forgiveness) is its epitome! 

May we grow in such motherly spirit, and be children of our One Mother - Earth. 

A Catholic Post Script: The Catholic church promotes a popular devotion to the spiritual motherhood of Mary in the month of May - it is a happy coincidence for those of the Catholic fold. Every month offers some celebration of Mother Mary in the Church. The month of May had a Greco-Roman significance for the cult of Artemis (fertility) and Flora (spring), when it was springtime in the Northern Hemisphere.  A Christian version of it was perhaps existent which was tapped by the Jesuit priest Latomia of the Roman College of the Society of Jesus in the 18th century. It received further push by the Papal promulgation of the assumption of Mother Mary in the 19th century.  The apparition to the young pastoral kids in Fatima is celebrated on May 13th and May 31st is celebrated as the feast of the visitation of Mary to her cousin Elizabeth.   There are special devotions for the month.  Devout Catholics find spiritual support in their filial devotion to Mother Mary - a shoulder to rest, a heart to comfort, a model to inspire, a source of strength. 

*https://culturacolectiva.com/en/history/anna-jarvis-where-did-mothers-day-originate/

+https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ayKSA44jnAo

Earth Mother - https://pixabay.com/vectors/earth-mother-earth-mother-nature-4307180/