Magyar Egyház, 1974 (53. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)

1974-05-01 / 5. szám

MAGYAR EGYHÁZ

7

MAGYAR

CHURCH

MOTHER, I LOVE YOU!

Ex. 20:12

May is the month for Mother’s Day. Of course, by now Mother’s Day is gone, yet its magic spell lasts through the entire month. Truthfully, it should last through the entire year, every day of our lives. Yes, just as some of the other holidays, like Christmas and Easter, every day should be Mother’s Day.

Motherhood is the only concept, mother is the only person respected by one and all in the world. Every culture, black or white, or any other color, God-fearing, or atheistic, they all pay homage to motherhood. As a matter of fact, all creatures, not only man, hold the mother’s role of the greatest importance. Birds, animals, even plants depend on mother’s love for life. The Bible bears witness to this in several places. Mother’s love is found and respected throughout the entire creation.

However, the most important question is: “What does MY mother mean to ME?” And the most important act is what I do about the answer to that question. Let us spend a little time and reflect upon motherhood and its earthly representative in our own family.

First, let us see what the Bible says about motherhood. Wise Solomon knew the sacrificial nature of motherhood, and he used it in his famous judgement in the Old Testament. There is a long line of mothers in the Bible, but the highest honor among them went to Mary, the mother of Jesus. She experienced the full range of a mother’s share from the highest joy of the angel-announced virgin birth to the greatest pain of witnessing her own son’s crucifixion. Her son paid her the highest tribute a son can pay as he arranged a mutual adoption between her and His beloved disciple. Even as He suffered on the cross, Jesus gave an excellent example of filial loyalty.

Of course Mary deserved her son’s loyalty, for she was a faithful mother, as we can judge from the meager account of her life in the Bible. In addition to the few passages on Mary in the New Testament,

the book of Proverbs is the best source of information on the ideal Oriental woman. From this account we can assume that she was a mother: “... her children rise up and call her blessed;...” What a wonderful list of virtues is to be found here! She is a versatile woman, who is good at all household chores, as well as trading, farming, and even bookkeeping. She is so efficient that her husband can find ample time to relax and attend public meetings. Everything is at peace at home, the wife and mother sees to that. For a last example we can assert that motherhood’s faith, loyalty and perseverance helped to bridge the national gap between Jesus and the Canaanite woman, who came to Him in her daughter’s behalf. Jesus was standing ready to help on the other side of that gap, while the mother’s love built the bridge on golden threads of faith, and desperate but stubborn hope.

There is an ancient Hebrew proverb, adopted by other cultures as well; God could not be everywhere; therefore He made mothers. Theologians may argue the correctness of this statement, for it refutes the omni-presence of God, nevertheless it is closer to the truth than we care to admit. When we are ready to walk away from God and decency, it is our mothers who will come after us to lead us back to Him. Even of only from far, a mother’s prayer may be the magnet that draws one away from harmful, indecent forces.

It is good to find reassurance in the Scriptures on motherhood, and mother’s love. To be true, today’s ideal woman does not have to make her own cloth and candles, she does not have to be a good trader, and her husband does not have to sit in the city gates, but a mother’s task is just as manifold as it was then, and there are great numbers of women who can stand up to the demands of motherhood. Cook, cleaning woman, chauffeaur, peace-maker, mother confessor and many other roles are still hers. And a conscientious mother will constantly ask herself: Have I done my very best for my husband, and my children? Have I been a good help? Have I really considered my family first above everything else? Do I always listen?