HISTORY, ORIGINS AND TRADITIONS
OF MOTHER'S DAY
Ancient
Origins of Mother's Day
If you
search the Internet for information about the history of Mother’s Day,
most websites will provide information about the ancient Greeks who had
a feast day that celebrated Rhea, the mother of the gods. In later
years (third century BC), the Roman’s celebrated Hilaria,
a three-day feast in honor of the mother goddess Cybele (you
may know it as the Ides of March).
However, that day was not meant to honor the worshipers or their own
mothers. Mothers were not forgotten in ancient times, nor were they
forgotten about until the first modern Mother’s Day came into being
during the seventeenth century. Throughout history, mothers have been
honored at many feasts and festivals for their fertility. Many of the
spring celebrations, such as for European pre-Christian civilizations,
had feasts to celebrate fertility – hence the fertility of the women,
i.e., mothers. Every religion has some type of ceremony that blesses
fertility or motherhood, even if there is not a day designated as such.
The mother is (or should be) honored during pregnancy and after birth.
You might even say that mother’s were/are celebrated all year round. As
civilizations evolved, we may have begun to forget about mom years after
we leave the nest. It may be that we may have forgotten about our moms,
and a day just for them is just what is needed – and not just to make
the card companies rich.
The History and Origin of Mothering Day
Mothering Day is a day that has been designated to celebrate mothers.
The roots of the holiday may have stemmed from the ancient Greco-Roman
celebrations evolving with the spread of Christianity from a celebration
of the mother of the ancient gods, to the Mother of the Church, Mary
(celebrated by traveling to the church a Christian was originally
Baptized, which was usually the town your mother lived in), eventually
becoming Mothering Day. The modern holiday of Mothering Day began
sometime in the 1600’s. The holiday began when a number of the rich
upper class in England decided to allow their servants the day off so
they could go and visit their mothers (note: many servants lived at the
homes of their employers and would have to travel). The holiday was
observed on the fourth Sunday of Lent (the Christian period of
repentance and prayer leading up to Easter).
The
holiday would be celebrated by going to church with the whole family,
then returning to the parent’s house for a huge feast. The children
would bring small gifts, sweets and other treats for the mother. A
traditional treat of the holiday is called the mothering cake (a very
rich fruit cake, also called a simnel cake), which the children usually
baked for their moms. One of the traditional dishes for the holiday is
furmety. Furmety is made by boiling wheat grains in sweet milk, then
adding lots of sugar and spice. In the north of England and in Scotland,
the traditional dish is a type of pancake called a carling (the dish is
so popular that in some towns the day is refered to as Carling Sunday).
Origin and History of Mother’s Day in
the United States
Mother’s Day in the United States did not begin until 1872, when Julia
Ward Howe suggested a day to celebrate mothers and would be a day
dedicated to peace. She began to hold organized Mother’s Day
celebrations in Massachusetts. [Note: Julia Ward Howe wrote the
Battle Hymm of the Republic.] The idea
began to spread to other parts of the country.
Three decades later, in 1907, Anna Jarvis,
wanted to dedicate a day to her deceased mother (Reese Jarvis) and had
her mother’s church (in Grafton, West Virginia), celebrate Mother’s Day
on the second anniversary of her mother’s day (the 2nd Sunday
of May). In 1908, her hometown of Philadelphia celebrated Mother’s
Day. Anna Jarvis recruited politicians, church leaders, business
leaders and many others to help spread the idea of the holiday through
speeches, letter writing and a host of other means. The celebration of a
day dedicated to mothers spread around the country like wildfire. In
1910, the state of West Virginia officially proclaimed a Mother’s Day
holiday. Within the next two years, almost every state had officially
proclaimed a holiday to honor mothers.
The Mother’s Day International Association
was incorporated in December of 1912 to organize the establishment of a
national holiday and to further the cause of motherhood around the
world.
In 1914, the holiday received an official
proclamation by President Woodrow Wilson, that Mother’s Day was to be
celebrated every year on the second Sunday of May. Every president since
Wilson has made a similar proclamation each year. [Note: although Anna
Jarvis was delighted with having a national holiday, she became
disillusioned with it. She originally set out to provide a more
religious observance for mothers, but it became too secularized and
commercialized for her. She was eventually admitted to a sanitarium in
the late 1940 and passed away on November 24, 1948.
International Celebration of Mother’s Day
Almost every country around the world has
some type of Mother’s Day celebration, although not always on the second
Sunday of May. Some dates of celebrations around the world include:
-
US, Australia, Belgium, Denmark,
Finland, Italy and Turkey: Second Sunday in May
-
Great Britian: Fourth Sunday of Lent
-
Spain: On the Feast of the Immaculate
Conception (to honor mothers and Mary, mother of Jesus)
-
France: Last Sunday of May
Carnations: The Flower of Mother's Day
Carnations are the “official” symbol of
Mother’s Day. This is due to the fact that the favorite flower of Anna
Jarvis’s mother was the carnation. It is a beautiful flower and very
appropriate to honor our mothers. There is also a tradition as to which
color carnation to purchase. If you have not seen mom in a long time,
or are sending the flowers because you cannot be with her, white
carnations are given. However, if you see mom all the time, to show
your love for her, red carnations are the correct color.
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Mother's
Day Facts and Information
Mother's
Day - What You Need to Know (About.com): A lot
of information and facts about the history and celebration of Mother's
Day.
Mother's
Day on the Net (Holidays.net):
Information, history and links related to Mother's day.
Mother's
Day (KidsDomain.com):
A fun Mother's Day site for kids with information and activities for the
holiday.
Happy
Mother's Day (TheHolidaySpot.com):
A site with history, information, ideas, poems other things about Mother's
Day.
Everything
Mother's Day (Everything Holidays.com):
News, history and information about the holiday.
For More Links Click Here
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Do you have a Mother who tells you not to buy anything or
don't spend a lot on a gift? Well, I think that is part of what a a
mother is. Even on her day she wants you to save money, even if the
gift is for her. But you need to think of all the things Mom has
done for you all year without wanting anything in return. Today is
the day for payback. Your gifts should reflect your feelings towards
her and go out of your way to be nice (even to your mother-in-law).
 
Mother's Day Gift Ideas:
For More Gift Ideas, Click Here
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