The Surprising Origins of Mother's Day

Mother's Day can be painful for many people. There are those who are mothers, of course, but also those who no longer feel they can claim the title "mother" because they have lost their child. Others of us have lost mothers, or never had good relationships with them in the first place. Or perhaps we long to become mothers but, for any number of reasons, it hasn't happened yet.

It surprised me to learn that the woman who created Mother's Day never intended for it to become a greeting-card holiday. Actually—it surprised me that an actual person invented it at all, as opposed to maybe the government... or Hallmark.

Anna Jarvis, who was child-free by choice, created the holiday in 1908 to celebrate her own mother. It was designated a national holiday in 1914. Greeting card, flower, and candy companies quickly seized on the idea.

By the time she died, Ms. Jarvis was fighting to have the day rescinded. She was horrified at what it had become.

Ms. Jarvis insisted that Mother's Day was not about buying things or even sending a card. It was about being together with your mother (preferably to take care of her and give her a well-earned break). And if you couldn't visit, she said that the next-best thing was to send a heartfelt written letter, rather than the words of some greeting card company.

If today is painful for you, or feels laden with grief, you can rest assured that you are in good company—not least with the woman who created this day in the first place.

You can read more about Anna Jarvis' story, as well as that of her family, here.

Maaaaaaayo May-ay-ay-O

Apologies to Harry Belafonte and his signature song Day O (see image)! May is here, however, and in addition to flowers, this first week in the month brings us a couple of things.

159 years ago this Wednesday, a force of 4,000 Mexican troops repelled a better equipped French invasion force that was twice their size. Under the leadership of General Ignacio Zaragoza Seguin, Mexico won the Battle of Puebla! Why do I mention this? Because this historic event is the reason that we have the holiday known as Cinco de Mayo. Strange how things get their start, isn't it? Here in the United States, we use the holiday of Cinco de Mayo to celebrate Mexican heritage and culture…at our best. Many use it simply as an excuse to party. It's important for us to understand where things come from and what their roots are: it keeps us grounded in our history and our tradition, even as we move into the future.

This week also bring us the National Day of Prayer (always the first Thursday in May). It is one of those few times when we as a nation collectively acknowledge God, and there will be events all over the country throughout the day. This year's theme is "Lord, pour out your love, life, and liberty". I encourage you to either take part in one of the events, or to mark out some time to pray with friends and family. The power of prayer is very real, made even more so by the knowledge that people all over the country will be doing the same.

Happy May, everyone!

What’s the deal with saints in the Episcopal Church?

We’ve started having Eucharist on Wednesdays at noon again, and we’ll take that opportunity to commemorate saints’ days.

Before I went to seminary, I didn’t know that Episcopalians could care about saints. I admit: I used to think, “Oh, that’s just superstition or idolatry.”

St. Helena

But actually, a strand of our Anglican tradition has a rich history of venerating saints. Turn to page 996 in your Book of Common Prayer, and you'll find a list of saint names and days, along with readings for each one.

The Episcopal Church also publishes a book called Lesser Feasts and Fasts, which includes biographies and prayers about one saint to remember for nearly every day.

That’s our official saint calendar, but we have others approved for "trial use." Old lists are male-heavy and European-heavy, so newer ones (Holy Women, Holy Men and A Great Cloud of Witnesses) try to have more of a balance.

And yet, the Episcopal Church doesn't state a clear theology of sainthood. The prayer book says,

"The communion of saints is the whole family of God, the living and the dead, those whom we love and those whom we hurt, bound together in Christ by sacrament, prayer, and praise." (p. 862)

This is beautiful, but vague. The vagueness is intentional. While some Episcopalians feel strongly about the communion of saints in the Roman Catholic sense, others want a more reformed understanding of it. (That's "reformed" like the Protestant Reformation.)

So, perhaps you like the idea of venerating the saints, or maybe you think invoking the saints is "repugnant to the Word of God" (it really says this in the Historical Documents in our Book of Common Prayer! see page 872). Either way, you're in good company in the Episcopal Church.

Join us for Eucharist on Wednesdays at noon. I hope that, like me, you'll enjoy learning about how to follow Jesus by studying the lives of saints.