Mothers - a great example of love and sacrifice

Last year, Publix supermarkets aired a commercial that shows the role of a mother both before and after her child is born.  The ad features a young girl helping her pregnant mother in the kitchen.  The little girl asks, “Can the baby hear me?” to which the mother responds, “I think so!”  When prompted by her mother to tell the baby a secret, the little girl embraces her mother’s pregnant belly and says, “You’re really going to love mom.”

The cartoon character Dennis the Menace told his friend Joey, "I don't know what I'll do when my mom gets too old to tie my shoes." 

A wise man once said: “To become a mother is not so difficult; on the other hand, being a mother is very difficult!"   

Who was the greatest influence in your life?  Has a teacher or a professor been your greatest influence? Perhaps you would say that a friend or maybe your spouse has influenced you the most. A recent poll asked that question to more than 4,000 adults. The results were revealing.  According to the poll, the person with the greatest influence was their mother: 42% of men and 53% of woman said that their mother was the most influential person in their life.

For all its stumbling blocks and pitfalls, motherhood is a natural part of God's creative order to bring love and caring to others. Motherhood as God planned it is a wonderful thing. We should honor it and lift it up is a beautiful example of love and sacrifice.  And we should teach the highest ideals of motherhood by words and example to our children.

The second reading mentions the hope and faithfulness of Jesus as it says:  “Let us hold unwaveringly to our confession that gives us hope, for he who made the promise is trustworthy.”  Christ is always faithful. Most of our mothers were faithful and unwavering in passing the faith to us by their words and example.

Most of us here today were baptized when we were a very young.  Our parents, especially our mother, gave us the gift of our faith in baptism and then taught us our faith as we grew up.  I suspect that many of us wouldn’t be here today if not for the unwavering faith of our mother.  I probably wouldn’t be a practicing Catholic if it weren’t for the faith of my mother and I wouldn’t be a deacon if not for the faith and support of my wife. 

 Last Sunday, during mass, I saw a young mother in the back foyer watching her toddler.  During the consecration, this mother knelt right in the middle of the foyer.  This was a great example of faith to me.  I’m sure it was difficult to keep track of her toddler while she knelt.  But, in faith, she continued to kneel all during the consecration. 

In the Gospel, Jesus told his apostles that they would be clothed with power from on high.  Mothers, by their baptism and their confirmation, are clothed with power from on high when they give birth to a child.  This power gives them the strength and the courage to raise their children in the faith.  Mothers are often the glue that holds the family together.  And the family is the glue that holds our Church and our nation together.

On this Mother's Day we pause to honor mothers and to reflect on the important contribution they have made to our lives and to society.  For most of us, our lives would have been empty without them.  

Let us pray:  Most Gracious Heavenly Father, we thank You for our mothers to whom You have entrusted the care of every precious human life from its very beginning in the womb.
You have given women the capacity of participating with You in the creation of new life. Grant that every woman may come to understand the full meaning of that blessing, which gives her a capacity for selfless love for every child she may be privileged to bear, and for all Your children.

To mothers You have given the great privilege and responsibility of being a child's first teacher and spiritual guide. Grant that all mothers may foster the faith of their children. Help mothers to grow daily in the knowledge and understanding of Your Son, and grant them the wisdom to impart this knowledge faithfully to their children and to all who depend upon them.

We ask your blessing on all those to whom You have entrusted motherhood. May Your Holy Spirit constantly inspire and strengthen them. May they follow the example of Mary, mother of Our Lord, and imitate her fidelity, her humility, and her self-giving love. May all mothers receive Your Grace abundantly in this earthly life, and may they look forward to eternal joy.  We ask this through Jesus Christ your Son, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen