One of the last things Jesus did on the cross was ask a friend to look after
his mother. The Gospel of John tells the story in chapter 19, verses 25-27:
“Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife
of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple
whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, ‘Dear woman, here is your
son,’ and to the disciple, ‘Here is your mother.’ From that time on, this
disciple took her into his home.”
(NIV).
It’s a touching story, and it points up how important it was to Jesus that
his mother be properly cared for. The disciple whom Jesus loved, a person
referred to only in the Gospel of John, was John himself. And as a close and
dear friend, he was Jesus’ choice to see that his mother would not fall
destitute with no one to provide for her.
Honor your Father and your Mother, the Commandment says. And Jesus certainly
honored his.
Someone will no doubt say, you don’t know my mother – she’s no Mary. How am I
supposed to honor a woman like that?”
Of course, no mother is perfect, and precious few mothers are what their
children would call ideal. But whatever their flaws and shortcomings, most
mothers do love their children in a profoundly deep and unconditional way. And
such unconditional love is rare in today’s world. But it’s there, and wherever
you see it, it’s a reflection of the unconditional love our heavenly Father has
for us.
More than 40 countries have an annual celebration of motherhood. In the
United States, Mothers’ Day owes its origins to the work of Ana Jarvis of
Grafton, West Virginia. Her letter-writing campaign eventually resulted in
President Woodrow Wilson’s 1914 proclamation of a national observance of
mothers, to be held each year on the 2nd Sunday of May.
A final thought. I heard one man say, “I don’t like being told to go see my
mother on some contrived holiday.“ Well, you might not like the idea of a
contrived holiday, but think about how your mother would feel when all her
friends are relating their stories of the things their children did with them on
Mother’s Day, and your poor mother can only feel alone and left out.
It isn’t flowers and brunches our mothers long for; those are just the
symbols of something infinitely more important – the precious gift of children
who care enough to share their time – in short, to love their mothers.
For all its commercialism, Mothers’ Day is a good thing. This year, let your
mother know how special she really is.
I’m Joseph Tkach, speaking of LIFE.
