Two Sundays ago, I was seated next to Sally in church when the children from Sunday school/children’s church approached their parents in the congregation to hand over their Mothering Sunday gifts. As Gwen approached her mum with a wide smile and a hug, she handed over a beautifully painted card and whispered “Happy Mother’s Day mom.” Gwen responded with a smile and gently corrected…”Mothering Sunday, love.”

After the church service, at the car park, one of the children – Meme was asking his mum, “mummy, how come there are 2 Mother’s Day every year and only one Father’s Day?” His mother turned around and smiled with the words “aunty Havilah will address that question”. I gently parried the question with a promise to give a detailed answer the next Sunday. I needed to do some research. So the explanation which is replicated below is culled from fromyoutcome.com – The story behind Mothering Sunday and Mother’s Day.

Mothering Sunday is celebrated on the fourth Sunday in Lent especially across the United Kingdom and Ireland while Mother’s Day occurs on the second Sunday in May and is largely celebrated in the USA as a National day to celebrate mothers.

Mothering Sunday started off around the 16th century in the UK as a time when people returned to their mother church where they were baptised, their local parish or Cathedral. It later metamorphosed into a date when servants could meet with their mothers and family and get together, often picking flowers on their way to church to present as gifts to their mothers. This religious tradition evolved into the Mothering Sunday secular tradition of gifting mothers on the fourth Sunday in Lent.

In the early 20th century, Anna Jarvis held a memorial to honoured her own mother in her church in West Virginia, USA. This event marked the first official observance of Mother’s Day. In 1914, the President of the USA made a proclamation making the second Sunday of May as the official date of a national day to celebrate mothers.

Inspired by Anna Jarvis’ efforts, Constance Penswick-Smith created the Mothering Sunday Movement in the UK and started a renewal of the Mothering Sunday. That day became celebrated both as Mother’s Day and Mothering Sunday in the UK and Ireland. Both celebrations have therefore become mixed up and many people think they are the same thing. Most other countries outside of the UK and Ireland, celebrate Mother’s Day rather than Mothering Sunday.

Havilah hopes that this expose into the origins of the two days will give us all a better understanding. Nevertheless, whether it is Mothering Sunday or Mother’s Day, mothers deserve to be appreciated and celebrated everyday for the pivotal role they play in families. A toast to mothers!
Love

Havilah