May is here and Mother’s Day will soon be upon us. Soon, we will leave everything aside, at least for a few hours on that day, and “officially” focus on a powerful image of love, sacrifice, service and life—on our mothers. Civilizations and empires around the world and throughout the centuries have emphasized the essential role of mothers in the life of their nations and cultures. Different countries until today celebrate the miracle of “motherhood” on various days of the year, based on different traditions. Cultures and societies from undated times have honored and celebrated mothers. Some historians suggest that Mother’s Day emerged from a custom of mother-worship in ancient Greece, which celebrated a special festival for the great mother of Greek gods. This festival was held around the vernal equinox, first in Asia Minor and eventually in Rome.

The question as to why mothers have always been so honored and revered by people around the world throughout the centuries seems unnecessary. Allow me, however, in honor of our mothers, to rehearse just a few of many answers that can be given to the aforementioned, almost superfluous question. Mothers, first and foremost, are sharers in the creative power of God. They conceive, carry, and give birth to a human being, which is as close as any person can come to the divine act of creation. A true mother is she who, knowing well the consequences and responsibilities of giving birth to a new life, accepts motherhood with pleasure. A mother is a person to whom having a baby is not a burden or “punishment,” but rather a blessing and an opportunity to experience a sacred status of being as close to God as any human being can get. The Virgin Mary is a great example of motherhood. Knowing well the consequences of accepting God’s will for her to become a mother while being virgin, she accepted it and endured all the consequences of raising Jesus as her son, even the pain of watching him be rejected, tortured and crucified. Remember … she was with him all the way to the cross.

The miracle of birth-giving is, however, only the beginning of the sacred and celebrated status of motherhood. It is far from the end in terms of the life spans of the children and grandchildren and great-grandchildren a mother raises. Mothers nurture their babies, loving them and sacrificing everything they can for the well-being and comfort of the new life they gave birth to. Finally, when their babies mature and grow into adulthood, mothers ultimately and graciously endure the stage of separation from those whom they had given life by letting them go on to their own future and destiny. However, even at this and subsequent stages, mothers don’t cease to be the caring, loving and nurturing pillars in the life of their children. They are always, until the moment of their death, ready and eager to hear from their children, and protect and defend them from any evil that may threaten their comfort and happiness. In all these ways, mothers again reflect the nature, actions, and love of God.

The sacred state of motherhood, however, is not limited to biological mothers. There are many women who play the sacred role of mothers in the lives of millions of children who do not have their biological mothers with them. Also, in many families grandmothers play a very important role and share an important aspect of the motherly care, nurture and support of the children. Many sisters, aunts, cousins and teachers I know, who themselves have no children, have truly demonstrated the miracle of motherhood that God has instilled in their hearts, with all its aspects of loving, caring, sacrificing and nurturing, in the lives of the children they have been closely associated with.

Mothers, we honor and thank you this day and every day of our life. We thank God for blessing us with you as our mothers.

Yours in Christ,
Fr. Vahan Hovhanessian