My beloved spiritual children in Our Risen Lord and Our Only True God and Our Only True Savior,
CHRIST IS RISEN! TRULY HE IS RISEN! ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ ΑΝΕΣΤΗ! ΑΛΗΘΩΣ ΑΝΕΣΤΗ!
HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!
If I Knew As A Child
If I knew as a child what I know now, Mom,
I probably wouldn't have made things so hard for you.
I would have understood that you were looking out for my best interest,
even though it may not have seemed so at the time.
I would have known how difficult it is to let go,
to stand back and let someone you love learn from their mistakes.
I would have realized how fortunate I was to have a mother who was always there for me,
even after an argument, even after I'd said things I shouldn't have.
While it's too late for a lot of things, it's not too late for me to tell you that I appreciate how
loving you are,
how giving you've been, and that even though I may not always be good at showing it,
I love you very much.
By Renee Duvall
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A MOTHER'S BEATITUDES
Blessed is the mother who understands her child, for she shall inherit a kingdom of memories.
Blessed is the mother who knows how to comfort, for she shall possess a child's devotion.
Blessed is the mother who guides by the path of righteousness, for she shall be proud of her children.
Blessed is the mother who is never shocked, for the she shall receive and know confidence and security.
Blessed is the mother who teaches respect, for she shall be respected.
Blessed is the mother who emphasizes the good and minimizes the bad, for her children shall follow her example.
Blessed is the mother who answers questions honestly, for she shall always be trusted.
Blessed is the mother who treats her children as she would like to be treated, for her home shall always be filled with happiness.
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MOTHER'S DAY HISTORY
Contrary to popular belief, Mother's Day was not conceived and fine-tuned in the boardroom of Hallmark. The earliest tributes to mothers date back to the annual spring festival the Greeks dedicated to Rhea, the mother of many deities, and to the offerings ancient Romans made to their Great Mother of gods, Cybele. Christians celebrated this festival on the Fourth Sunday in Lent in honor of the Annunciation of the Ever-Virgin Mary, Mother of God. In England this holiday was expanded to include all mothers and was called Mothering Sunday.
In the United States, Mother's Day started nearly 150 years ago, when Anna Jarvis, an Appalachian homemaker, organized a day to raise awareness of poor health conditions in her community, a cause she believed would be best advocated by mothers. She called it "Mother's Day."
Fifteen years later, Julia Ward Howe, a Boston poet, pacifist, suffragist, and author of the lyrics to the "Battle Hymn of the Republic," organized a day encouraging mothers to rally for peace, since she believed they bore the loss of human life more harshly than anyone else.
In 1905 when Anna Jarvis died, her daughter, also named Anna, began a campaign to memorialize the life work of her mother. Legend has it that young Anna remembered a Sunday School lesson that her mother gave in which she said, "I hope and pray that someone, sometime, will found a memorial mother's day. There are many days for men, but none for mothers."
Anna began to lobby prominent businessmen like John Wannamaker, and politicians including Presidents Taft and Roosevelt to support her campaign to create a special day to honor mothers. At one of the first services organized to celebrate Anna's mother in 1908, at her church in West Virginia, Anna handed out her mother's favorite flower, the white carnation. Five years later, the House of Representatives adopted a resolution calling for officials of the federal government to wear white carnations on Mother's Day. In 1914 Anna's hard work paid off when Woodrow Wilson signed a bill recognizing Mother's Day as a national holiday.
At first, people observed Mother's Day by attending church, writing letters to their mothers, and eventually, by sending cards, presents, and flowers. With the increasing gift-giving activity associated with Mother's Day, Anna Jarvis became enraged. She believed that the day's sentiment was being sacrificed at the expense of greed and profit. In 1923 she filed a lawsuit to stop a Mother's Day festival, and was even arrested for disturbing the peace at a convention selling carnations for a war mother's group. Before her death in 1948, Jarvis is said to have confessed that she regretted ever starting the mother's day tradition.
Despite Jarvis's misgivings, Mother's Day has flourished in the United States. In fact, the second Sunday of May has become the most popular day of the year to dine out, and telephone lines record their highest traffic, as sons and daughters everywhere take advantage of this day to honor and to express appreciation of their mothers.
May the Almighty God bless all mothers, both living and those that have fallen asleep in the Lord.
Keep your mother in your prayers and thank God for bestowing this priceless gift, your mother, to you!
With agape in Our Risen Lord Jesus Christ,
+Father George