Children may ask why if there is a Mother's Day and a Father's Day, is there no Children's Day. The classic response? Every day is children's day.
Maybe yes, and may be no, but according to the Bible, by at least some definition, every day should be mother's day (and father's day).
The Ten Commandments teach us to honor our mothers and fathers in commandment five, found in Exodus 20:12 and repeated in Deuteronomy 5:16. And perhaps less famously, but no less powerfully, Leviticus 19:3 declares, "You shall each revere your mother and father, and keep My Sabbaths; I am the Lord your God."
So for those who take these teachings to heart, is Mother's Day anything special, or is it simply the day when others make a big deal of something we attempt to do each and every day? I think that the answer to both questions is yes.
If you, like me, see the words of the Bible as making a claim on your everyday existence, then in some way or another, every day really is a Mother's Day -- a day on which we can honor and revere our moms. Of course, that we accept such an obligation does not mean that we always fulfill it!
Speaking at least for myself, there is pretty much always a gap between what I feel myself called to do and my ability to fulfill that call. That's not necessarily a bad thing. It may be that the essence of spiritual living is to be ever-aspirational, always striving to fulfill our obligations, especially to other people, ever better.
Maybe yes, and may be no, but according to the Bible, by at least some definition, every day should be mother's day (and father's day).
The Ten Commandments teach us to honor our mothers and fathers in commandment five, found in Exodus 20:12 and repeated in Deuteronomy 5:16. And perhaps less famously, but no less powerfully, Leviticus 19:3 declares, "You shall each revere your mother and father, and keep My Sabbaths; I am the Lord your God."
So for those who take these teachings to heart, is Mother's Day anything special, or is it simply the day when others make a big deal of something we attempt to do each and every day? I think that the answer to both questions is yes.
If you, like me, see the words of the Bible as making a claim on your everyday existence, then in some way or another, every day really is a Mother's Day -- a day on which we can honor and revere our moms. Of course, that we accept such an obligation does not mean that we always fulfill it!
Speaking at least for myself, there is pretty much always a gap between what I feel myself called to do and my ability to fulfill that call. That's not necessarily a bad thing. It may be that the essence of spiritual living is to be ever-aspirational, always striving to fulfill our obligations, especially to other people, ever better.
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