This theological reflection on motherhood and womanhood by Iris Habib el-Masry was published in the Sunday School Magazine in 1952.
Your Mother
The Church has dedicated the month of Kiahk to our Lady the Virgin, and in this month chants praises for her glorification. For on the 29th of this month, we celebrate the glorious Feast of the Nativity. As our Lady the Virgin is the Mother of God, it is fitting for us to contemplate motherhood and its sacredness.
Every birth is a wondrous mystery of the creativity of the Creator. A child is the flower of his mother and the fruit of her life, for he was formed within her, and his life emanated from hers: his flesh from her flesh, and his blood from hers.
A Christian child, however, is not only born physically from his mother, but is also the fruit of her prayers. During the long months in which he was hidden within her, she had continually lifted up prayers: “O Lord, may my child be noble, pure, generous and loyal! May his life be a source of blessing for others. May he be a chosen vessel for You, O my God!” Indeed, there are some pious mothers who entreat God to make their children totally dedicated to His service. Therefore, your mother gave birth to you through her prayers, her aspirations, and the depths of her love.
Not only that, your mother also suffered great pain to bring you into this world. The Lord Christ Himself says, “A woman, when she is in labour, has sorrow because her hour has come; but as soon as she has given birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world.”[1]John 16:21. So, do not forget your mother’s sighs and pain, for every mother has endured the greatest pain in order to bring a person into the world. God has chosen the woman as a tool for His creativity – for if not for her, you would not have been this marvellous thing: namely, a free, thinking person whose eyes look toward the stars, though his feet are on the ground. Indeed, you would not have been that person who was prepared for Baptism — that is prepared for life with God, for His grace and for His glory. Therefore, you can bless your mother, throughout all ages in the kingdom of God, offering thanksgiving to Him who has granted you your mother, and through her, has given you this body in which you have lived and through which you have been able to work, to serve and to become worthy of the kingdom of God.
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— 14 —
Because of the depth of her tenderness, a mother prepares food, drink and clothing for her children, and tends to their comfort. She frolics with her child in his play and is disturbed at the slightest of his shrieks. Her heart is perturbed at his crying and exults in his success, and because she serves with contentment and joy, no one senses the greatness of her service. You must, however, know that your mother lives for you. You have not only received physical care from her, but you have also received the greatest blessing, namely the blessing of the knowledge of God and that of living in Him. She nourished you, not with transient food alone, but she also nourished you with her spirit, and given you of the everlasting food which leads to eternal life. Your mother observed you and rejoiced when she saw the first spark of discernment emanating from your eyes, and the first glimmer of conscience radiating from within you.
So, young man, think about all that your mother has endured for your sake over the years, as a result of which you have grown in “wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and men”.[2]Luke 2:52 Train yourself to see, behind your mother, the light of our Lady the Virgin, whom our Good Saviour has made a mother to us all when, whilst on the Cross, He exclaimed to His beloved Disciple saying, “Behold your mother!”[3]John 19:27 Through the grace of earthly motherhood, meditate on this greater grace, which has caused the Mother of God to become a mother to all human beings.
— 15 —
How to cite this text (Chicago/Turabian):
el-Masry, Iris Habib. “Your Mother” [Ummuka], Sunday School Magazine 6, no. 1 (January 1952): 14–15. Translated by Mervat Hanna in Archive of Contemporary Coptic Orthodox Theology. Sydney, NSW: St Cyril’s Coptic Orthodox Theological College. https://accot.stcyrils.edu.au/ihe-ym/.
(For more information, see Citation Guidelines)
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