Written by the staff of Safe Families, an organization to create relationship and connection.
Mother’s Day is celebrated on different dates and in different ways throughout the world. In the UK, it began during the Middle Ages. On the fourth Sunday of Lent, a new tradition began called Mothering Sunday. Everyone was allowed to take a day off to travel to their hometown, visit the church they grew up in (their mother church), and see their family. During those times, it was not uncommon for children as young as ten years old to leave the family home to work, so families would be separated throughout the year apart from this one day. History tells us that for centuries, the Church has been at the heart of family life, and we know that very often, church can become family to those who live far away from, are estranged from, or who no longer have any biological family. This is part of God’s design for human flourishing…The people we worship with on a Sunday become our family. We don’t choose who is part of our church, just like we don’t choose who is in our biological family, and yet we are joined with them. We each belong to Christ, and collectively we belong to His family, the Church. This is radical belonging which goes beyond surname, blood, and family bonds. It’s a promise for each one of us, regardless of any family circumstances…In Matthew 12:48–50, Jesus redefines family. He takes our small picture of what family is and expands it into this wonderful image of the disciples becoming one another’s brothers and mothers. Although He had His biological mother and brothers nearby, He looks at His friends and uses these familial terms to describe their relationship. He shatters our societal expectations that biological family always comes first, suggesting instead that the person sat beside us in a service is as close as a brother because God has placed us together in His family. He calls us to love and value one another as highly as our own flesh and blood. As well as celebrating the mothers in our own lives, Mother’s Day also prompts us to remember those who are longing for a child that hasn’t arrived, those with children no longer in their care, those displaced from their children, and those who have been through miscarriage or have lost a child. We believe that each of us has a part to play in showing belonging to those for whom Mother’s Day is a challenging time, or who don’t have family to call their own, within our church and in our local communities. We each need mother figures within our church family to care for, support, advise, and nurture us. Each one of these mother figures is someone to celebrate and be thankful for. What a beautiful picture of family we have to celebrate this Mother’s Day.
He [Jesus] replied to him, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?” Pointing to his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.” [Matthew 12:48-50]
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