Should Christian’s celebrate Mother’s day?


My mother, as a Christian, does not believe in Mother’s Day (as she reminded me on Sunday, commenting that no one understood her feelings on this) and as a result we have never celebrated the day. In saying this, as an adult, I do send her a card (a humorous one this year) and call her on the photo to say hi.  Likewise, I send my dad a card and as I always do (twice weekly), I give him a call.

I have never encouraged (or discouraged) my children from making a big deal out of the day (and nor has my husband), however they have always liked to do something special (but I am yet to get breakfast in bed!). Now that they are both adults they like to take me out for meal somewhere nice (this year, on the Saturday, we went to a lovely place for breakfast). I enjoy these special moments and I have no plans to say no to these and see no reason to, as they are lovely times together that create wonderful memories. We don’t go overboard and don’t get carried away with the commercial hype of Mother’s Day with expensive gifts.  I never expect a gift but sometimes one or both of my sons will surprise me which is nice. To be honest, it’s more about spending time together.

Is anything wrong with this?

Some would argue that due to the origins of Mother’s Day – a pagan ritual to honour Rhea, the wife of Cronus and the mother of many deities of Greek mythology, Christians should have nothing anything to do with the day at all even though current day has nothing to do with the original roots. Another argument put forward to avoid the day is the fact that the Bible does not ask us to dedicate just one day to our parents (as in celebration) rather honour them every day and therefore there is no need to celebrate Mother’s or Father’s Day.  This same argument could be used in regards to celebrating birthdays, but we continue to celebrate birthdays even if they too have ties back to the Greeks and Romans where most celebrations had pagan connections.

I feel comfortable in enjoying the day with my sons and treat it as a day for the family, getting together and doing something nice. 

What I don't like in the commerical side that it has become and it would be nice if that wasn't so "in your face".

I would be very interesting in your views on this one as most Christians do celebrate Mother’s Day and see nothing wrong with it.

Comments

  1. We are no fuss about things like this. Depending who is home I may be taken out for a nice meal or someone will cook a nice dinner at home. I may get gifts or not. It is more about the kids showing in whatever way grabs them how they honour & love me. I discourage excess due to the commercialism but don't discourage the generosity that is behind the thought. Does that make sense?

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    1. Yep, it's more along the line I take. I'm not pro active, it's completely up to the boys and what they want to do. But I'm not going to discourage them . But like you I don't like the commercialism, it's the same with St Valentines Day. That all gets silly.

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  2. I never even thought to look into the origins of mother's and father's day - I figured it was just a day to specifically honour and spoil one's parents and that's all. I guess it comes as no surprise - I have read about the origins of birthday celebrations and the roots of candles on birthday cakes etc... But we prefer to turn birthdays into a day to be thankful for the person whose birthday it is, and a day to show our appreciation and love for who they are. We don't go nuts on mother's and father's day, but the family do some sweet things for me - sometimes breakfast in bed, cook the meal for me, the children also like to make me a card and a handmade gift usually. I think it's sweet and generous of them, and they enjoy spoiling me. :) As mothers we can tend to always be the one giving - and there is huge blessing in that - but we must also be able to graciously receive when our families want to do special things for us so they too can receive the blessing of giving.

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    1. Good to read, my thoughts are the same. My children like to spoil me and I love it when they do these special things. On Saturday, eldest son and I had a lovely time doing things together, including checking out a great kitchenware store.

      We use to have birthday candles as it was the only time the boys could "play" with fire:))) and blow out the candles !!

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  3. Although we do not celebrate Christmas and Easter because of some of the above reasons, we do birthdays/ Mothers'/ Fathers' day on a low scale as they are not to do with the worship of God. Of course if one turns them into an idol it is a different matter. However, we celebrate on Saturday if the occasion falls on the Lord's Day.

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    1. We did Saturday this year as it was a breakfast and we wanted to do some shopping.

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  4. I did not realise Mother's Day went back to pagan worship, etc, but had read that a woman in the States wanted to honour her mother and other monthers in her church and so gave them a card one year and has since been thoroughly horrified by how commercial the occasion has become.
    Reading of mothers experiences it seems most are disappointed at how stressful the day is, etc, so I guess it just confirms my opinion of it.
    I have no real dislike of honouring mothers, but I do not think a day for such a thing should be necessary. We should be able to hear of gratitude or love from our children any day of the year. In fact, it would be a rare day when my daughter did not tell me that she loves me and she often adds "gorgeous" or "darling" to that sentence! =)(hope that makes sense!)
    Since losing my mother the day has left me cold, but I think that is not really a good attitude and if as my children grow they decide to do something to show love/gratitiude, I won't knock it back, but I sure are not going to be even reminding them that mother's day is coming up!
    love,
    Bets

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    1. Mother theses day "expect" something on Mother's Day and for that reason alone, they have lost the reason for mother's day. Back during the Victorian era, servants were given "Mothering Sunday" off so they could visit their mothers (something they couldn't do very often) and families would visit the graves of mothers and grandmothers - it wasn't about gifts but something more important (and yes, sometimes sad).

      And yes, the love your children give you all year around is what matters (which is where my mother is coming from) - but if they grow up and want to spoil you on Mother's Day, its is very touching and special.

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  5. Thank you for posting this. I feel it is a day when mothers just need to relax and not get too entitled because we are not perfect and it's just probably not the healthiest thing to expect to get extra honors. I think I agree with everything you said. It's nice if the family wants to bless you and honor you. But it's good if you don't expect too much because truth be told we are just not worthy of everything some of us come to expect. Blessings.

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    1. Thankyou Mrs A for dropping by. We should never expert or feel entitled to gifts - thats a very selfish attitude - anyway, I always think a big hug or a handmade care is worth more than any expensive gift:)))

      Blessings to you.

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    2. That is true. I LOVE big hugs and great big wet kisses. My girls also like to pick flowers for me and I collect them in a decorative pot. They draw pictures and make me cards too all year round.

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  6. I don't believe in mothers/fathers day - not because it originates as a pagan celebration but because I feel its more enjoyable to appreciate them on days when I am truly feeling thankful for them rather than a day when its forced onto us by society.
    I dislike how sooooo many celebrations have become over commercialised - especially Christian celebrations! I think its hugely important to keep Christian occasions 'celebrated and remembered' but not by shops etc!
    It is nice to celebrate 'people' and remind them that they are important to us, so I do still do something for my mother on mother's day & my family do spoil me - but I don't want them to ever feel like they 'have' to!

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    1. I think you hit the nail on the head - it isn't about "what we want" it is about what our children want to do for us, whether that is big or small. We should "expect" something to happen. Some mothers get heaps of gifts (expensive) and to me that isn't what mother's day is about at all - and that is the side of it I don't like one bit. I don't even expect breakfast in bed - the text message I got fro my daughter-in-law was sweet and full of love, that meant more than any gift:))

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  7. Thank you so much for addressing this. I'd like to give your mother a hug. :-)

    My sister-in-law and I have had a dialogue about the appropriateness of celebrating Mother's Day in church meetings for at least two years now. We are both childless and for us it has become such an exercise in pain and sadness to be in a church meeting where great celebrations are going on that we simply can't go. Weak, perhaps, but reality for us. I have single lady friends who also suffer in relation to this holiday, and I'm sure other women do as well (ladies who had abusive mothers or lost their mothers, etc.)

    We still do something at home for my mom, particularly as it's something she tends to expect after years of my family celebrating. But, my sister-in-law and I both feel that it shouldn't be done in church, or at least should be very subdued.

    I had read something that gave a little information about the pagan origins of Mother's Day, and also something about the over-commercialization of it. It is a shame to many people that Mother's Day is the only day in the year that they do honor their mothers. I agree with the idea that it should be done more spontaneously and with genuine gratitude rather than imposed upon us by the greeting card and gift companies.

    I have read something about the origins of the practice in the U.S. specifically that said, as I recall, that it was started by a specific lady's desire to honor her mother. As I recall, the celebrating went "viral" and became something that she didn't intend it to be. Still, I know there is that connection to the past pagan origins and it's something I'd probably want to avoid or downplay if we had children. At this point we would probably be too much of an offense to some of our family members if we didn't continue to acknowledge the day for them. :-) We don't observe Christmas because of the many pagan connections and that is quite as much as some of them can tolerate. ;-)

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    1. P.S. I don't know how Australian churches observe Mother's Day, but here in the U.S. quite a huge deal is made over it in my experience. Awards - sometimes quite impressive ones - are given out to the mothers with the most children, the biggest baby, the newest baby, the oldest mother, etc. Often the same ladies get certain awards every year. Also, it's very common to have Mother-Daughter Banquets in connection to the day. I might dare to say that it is generally the third largest "holiday" observed by the U.S. churches after Christmas and "Easter", though Independence Day might be a close fourth.

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    2. To your second part Mary - I find the "awards" very sad and it makes me a little cross. Giving an award to the mother with the most children - why- it doesn't mean she is a better mother to one who struggles to have just one or the one with a child with a learning difficulty where every day is a battle. Motherhood isn't a competition.

      I can completely understand how all of this must make you feel - it is very un-Christian and not very thoughtful to women like yourself, those who are struggling with miscarriage etc..

      The commercial world has really sucked us in to "celebrating" almost anything as it means they can make money. So many people are so dense that they can't see that they are being sucked in.

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    3. To your first part Mary - Yes, I can imagine any woman who is struggling to have a baby, who has lost a baby and those who have lost a mother - Mother's Day is tough and many people don't think of women like your self. Mother's Day, whilst nice and I enjoy being spoilt, is not something the Lord has asked to do (as we are asked to honour our parents "every day") therefore to me, it isn't something that should be in a church - as a main focus on the Sunday service.

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    4. Thank you for your kind words and understanding, Jo. :-)
      And, I do agree that it's nice for a mother to be spoilt a bit sometimes. :-)

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  8. Can I add something funny to your comments? :) my daughter asked me this year how come we don't have a children's day lol:)
    Interesting....I didn't know about the origins of it either. I think it's definitely a painful day for women who have wantd to be mothers and can't and also for,this who've lost their mums. But personally I've enjoyed all the lovely cards I've gotten from my daughter since she learned to write. They are very cute and its lovely to see what she's written in them as children are so genuine:)

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    1. You can tell your daughter that International Children's Day is on the 1st of June. Its a day to remember all the children of the world that are less fortunate that us in the developed world.
      Universal Children's Day falls on the 20th of November and set up by the United Nations in 1959 also about the welfare of children around the world.
      http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/resources/u/universalchildrensday.asp

      However, neither day is about gifts:))))

      I have kept the cards my children gave me for mother's day, they are lovely to look back on.

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  9. wow Jo, you are a wealth of information! :) I will tell her that for sure:)

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