What does this day mean?

Although my mother has died and I am coming up on the first anniversary of her death, I find myself pondering on the fate of Mother's Day.  If we cannot figure out what a woman is or is not, what will we do with a day that belongs exclusively to women?  If we no longer value the role of mother because we do not esteem or desire children, what will we do with a day that belongs to those women who have children or at least have served as a mother figure to them?   Maybe Hallmark better start planning for the future because, if things continue as they have, the future of this day is limited.

Mother's Day makes perfect sense in the Christian context.  We know what a man and a woman are because we listen to Scripture, because we know of God's design, and because we have respect for His order.  It does not make us any less sinful but at least we know the context of our lives, we have a sense of God's purpose, and, even when we screw it up, we know what the default is.  The second Sunday in May may not be the perfect day for the Christian calendar to recall and rejoice in the gift of motherhood -- I would opt for August 15 and the commemoration of St. Mary, Mother of Our Lord -- but honoring motherhood fits us.  It used to fit the world until we decided that being a mom was demeaning, that the life of the mother needed to be valued by a paycheck to be of any worth, that children were a burden to be snipped in the bud by birth control or abortion, and that marriage itself was an antiquated concept based on slave patterns.  Boy, are we smart!

Every age and culture honored and valued the role of the mother, at least in theory if not in practice, until a generation or so ago when it all began to unravel.  Feminism insisted that there must be better things for women to do than to have babies and raise them up into productive and honest adults.  Then when it seemed that they had control of their bodies and did not have to pay attention to the choice that leads to having children, a pro-choice movement deemed having the child a less fulfilling choice than disposing of them.  Contrary to what people think, statistics tell us that abortions were just what the critics said -- birth control for those who had given their consent and then had regrets.  Would that every bad choice could be undone by a medical procedure or pill!  What feminist thought that it would get to this point where a woman had nothing to do with the body and everything to do with a desire or a feeling?  Oddly enough we cannot even call them mothers anymore -- birthing parent is the term of choice.  Even the birth certificates seem headed in that direction.  We don't have moms or dads anymore -- only generic, indistinguishable parents.  So much for Mother's Day!

If you want to be a rebel, buy a Mother's Day card.  Talk it up.  Talk up being a woman and mom.  Insist that it is not out of place or offensive or irrelevant anymore but pretty much the most important vocation for women just as it is for men -- children are a gift and heritage from the Lord.  Better yet, buy a religious Mother's Day card.  Be an advocate for God, for godly order in creation, and all things godly.  Let's be counter-cultural; observe Mother's Day.  Who would have ever thought I could make a statement like that?  It is morning in America, folks.