Sermon for Mothering Sunday – 18th March 2023: 1 SAMUEL 1:20-28, 2 CORINTHIANS 1:3-7, JOHN 19:25b-27

Deacon Chris Saccali – St Paul’s Athens

 

Cast your minds back, if you can, to the first film you saw at the cinema as a child. I remember my mother taking me to see Mary Poppins and the following year the Sound of Music at the cinema in Worcester- mid sixties the age I now am – in the Midlands, central England, where I am from. These films and the whole occasion of it made a huge impression on me. Also, it was a happy event and in my teens my mother’s health declined so that I became the main carer and housekeeper until we lost her when I was aged seventeen.

So I do understand the mixed feelings we may have or bring with us surrounding the feast of Mothering Sunday or the more commercial Mother’s Day. Some of us may have lost mothers over the past year or a parent who cared for us.

 

Let’s look at the origins of the feast. Traditionally, the fourth Sunday of Lent was kept as light relief in the austere Lenten fast. For this reason it is also known as Refreshment Sunday, fasting rules were slightly relaxed and even weddings were permitted to cheer the congregation and encourage them in their  fast.

Inevitably the return to the ‘mother’ church became an occasion for family reunions when children as young as ten years old who were working away, in service maybe- think Downton Abbey or as apprentices learning a trade, returned home on a Sunday off.

This, in turn, led to a regular annual occurrence and celebration of the mother church ( mitropoli) and the family with mothers or the church being given flowers, cakes and other gifts ready for Easter. We are so grateful to Shirley and her family in UK and thrilled that after COVID we have these posies here today to be given out. May they be a blessing to this church St Paul’s, our mother church, and to those who receive them and their household.

I wonder what memories you have of this day ? They may be bitter sweet and smothering rather than mothering. Let us turn now to consider the readings chosen for today – they are challenging and painful :  Hannah had her long desired child after years of childlessness then dedicated him to the Lord- what kind of dedication is that- incredible.

We are gathered here today in St Paul’s on this family feast as a breather through Lent and as is fitting to remember Mary Taylor a long term active member for forty years until her death last month at the remarkable age of 101 years young. Mary Rosamund Taylor was remarkable, although in her humility she did not think so. She was greatly proud of her heritage from Wales. She was a veteran of the second world war which she would talk about on occasions with other service people like John Day, long term resident here and Church Warden. I have heard they used to enjoy a dance together. These were the old guard of St Paul’s who served with love and duty – we remember them with fondness.

Mary was a family oriented person and her life was not without sorrow but she always counted her blessings and looked on the bright side of life. She encouraged others and she was a great encouragement to me personally. She called me home grown. Mary had a great sense of humour and compassion. She would have loved and laughed at our posies today as she was allergic to flower pollen. On many occasions she had to sit right at the back far away from the flowers.

She called St Paul’s her church family and she meant it. For years she ran the preserves stall and many of you remember helping her out. She was strong in her faith and passionate about the Lord. She brought up her children, looked after her father who also lived to a good age, and brought up her grandson Errikos . She was so proud of Rosamund and delighted to know Errikos and Joanna had found each other, married and settled down. She looked forward to the safe birth of their baby boy. Just before she died she held that baby in her arms. It reminds me of Candlemas and the story of Simeon and Anna. She was ready to go home to her heavenly Father.

 

Our gospel reading today is one of the shortest we have in our lectionary readings but it sums everything up, as Jesus, on the cross prepares to return to His Father. What does he say from on high while in agony ? He is still thinking of others as he spies the disciple he loved probably John and his mother Mary at the foot of the cross.. Note Jesus’ mother’s name, the exemplary Mary God Bearer – Theotokos.  Christ  is saying: ‘take care of each other be family to each other in this time of grief as I am leaving you and the earth.‘ Greece has felt and is feeling a huge wave of collective grief this month in the wake of the train crash.

So I urge all of us – Mary’s family and we at St Paul’s both our visitors and regular members to take care of each other and act like Christ’s family as well as his body. This is especially important to remember as we have our Annual General Meeting and elections coming up next week. Please consider standing for election for Council, warden or for Archdeaconry Synod which is close to my heart as I was Lay Representative for years and then served on Diocesan Synod and Bishop’ s Council. We all need to serve the church in one way or another.

Another phrase comes to me from Mary Poppins ‘ practically perfect in every way’ , our Mary, Mary Taylor was not perfect, just as no human family or church family is  and we acknowledge that on Mothering Sunday with our thoughts of our own families and the Church family we belong to. Mary wouldn’t want to be thought of as perfect but she took on Christ’s words in the Sermon on the Mount  ‘Be  perfect therefore,  as your Heavenly Father is perfect. ‘ It is something we aspire to in our Christian life and journey of discipleship which we travel together.

Let us pray: Come, Mother God,

Come as an enfolding nurturing presence, come as steadfast love to hold us.

Come, Mother God.

Come as an enabling, strengthening force, come as tough  love to let us go

Come , Mother God, come as friend and comforter

Healing our wounds, walking our way, come as wounded healer to make us whole.

AMEN