May 2007
“Hello...Greetings in
Christ!
Most of you know this...if you don’t; here it is, from my friends at
the St Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church:
Julia Ward Howe, author of the "Battle Hymn of the Republic," grew
weary of the brutality of war. Drawing on what she had witnessed during the
Civil War and what was happening overseas in the Franco-Prussian War, she wrote
the "Mother's Day Proclamation," whose final lines call us together in peace and
unity:
"....In the name of womanhood and humanity, I earnestly
ask That a general congress of women without limit of nationality, May be
appointed and held at someplace deemed most convenient, And the earliest period
consistent with its objects, To promote the alliance of the different
nationalities, The amicable settlement of international questions, The great and
General interests of Peace. "
In 1872 she began celebrating a Mother's Day for Peace, a day in which women
would come together and work towards peace in all areas of life. By the next
year, women in 18 cities celebrated Mother's Day for Peace, and women in Boston
celebrated it for at least 10 years afterward.
In 1907, Anna Jarvis was inspired by the memory of her mother, Anna
Reeves Jarvis (who had organized Mother's Work Days in 1858 to improve sanitary
conditions) and re-organized Mother's Day as a memorial day for women. She told
the President that her intent was identical to Howe's---that the greatest honor
to show a woman was not to kill her children but to find alternate ways of
dealing with conflict other than force. By 1909, Mother's Day was celebrated in
46 states, Canada and Mexico, and by 1914 President Woodrow Wilson declared
Mother's Day to be an official US holiday.
Today we ask you to continue to celebrate Mother's Day in the spirit in
which it was intended. It can be a day to reflect on peace and even
promote peace in small ways, a day which above all else calls us to do
our best to make this world a better place in which we and our neighbors can
live. Please keep the spirit of Mother's Day going this Mother's Day, the next,
and all the days in between!
God bless all our mothers who inspire us day by day to work for peace.” (Author Unknown)
Pastor Steve