MOTHERS' DAY

Press, Volume LXXI, Issue 21464, 4 May 1935, Page 5

MOTHERS' DAY

.WIDE RECOGNITION ITS ORIGIN AND MEANING "Mothers' Day" will be celebrated this year on Sunday, May 12. Its observance originated in the United States, gaining congressional recognition in May, 1914, when the second Sunday in May was set aside as "mothers' day." This was the outcome of the work of Miss Anna Jarvis, of Philadelphia, who did much to establish the day as one of national importance. She was one of the incorporators of the International Mothers' Day Association. It was not long before Mothers' Day began to be observed in Great Britain, and it has gradually come to be recognised throughout the Empire. It was taken up by many of the churches and by such institutions as the Young Men's and the Young Women's Christian Associations. Its celebration was made a part of the Sunday services, and members of church congregations were encouraged to adopt the custom or wearing a white flower to mark the occasion. In America .ne flower originally chosen was a carnation, because of its symbolic qualities, but this, of course, could not always be obtained in May in other parts of the world, and so any flower, so long as it is white, is worn. A chrysanthemum Is an appropriate and pleasing emblem for trie purpose, and in New Zealand is easily obtainable at this time of the year. A Pleasant Custom In England it is the custom in some olaces for children dressed in white to stand at the church door with baskets of flowers and distribute them to people arriving. Such is the origin and the method of observance of Mothers' Day which, though it was somewhat reluctantly taken up outside America at first, is now all s ost universally recognised by religious and other bodies throughout the English-speaking world. But apart from the outward observance of the day it is meant to be marked in other v/ays by those who instituted it. They felt trft one day of the year should be set aside to remind people of what their mothers had done for them and meant to them—things, which although deeply appreciated, might not always be spared a thought in the hurry and rush of life. Moreover, it was intended that Mothers' Day should be a day on which some expression of appreciation for the mothers of the world should be given. Men women, and children, it seemed, would do well to give their mothers some tangible token of what they felt, some small gift which would be an indication that they had not forgotten their debt to their mothers. In other ways, too, it has been suggested that a tribute should be paid to mothers. Help could be given with the housework so that mother could have a complete day of rest. In America there is an institution called the Golden Rule Foundation, J and it has a special mothers" day j committee. This committee offers ; prizes to school children for essays on "Mother," and helps to bring the | observance of the day before young 1 people. Two years ago, moreover, Mrs Franklin D. Roosevelt, the President's wife, instituted a movement to make Mothers' Day the occasion to assist a fund for helping dependent mothers and needy children. There is a feast day, observed in the Anglican Church, known as "Mothering Sunday." It is not to be confused with "Mothers' Day." though, as observed now. it has much in com- - mon with it. "Mothering Sunday" is the mid-Sunday in Lent, and it was originally set apart in honour of the spiritual mother, the Holy Church. On this day the Pope used to conduct the ceremony of blessing the go'don rose. Popularly it was observed as a holiday, and young people away from home would return and bring with them a "Simnel cake," a rich cake which was eaten with scallops. The name, incidentally, has nothing to do with the pretender, Lambert Simnel, as has been sometimes supposed, but is derived from the Latin "simila," white flour. This cake was brought home and eaten with considerable rejoicing. Both schoolchildren and apprentices would go home, if possible, on this day. It was an important occasion, for in the old days apprentices travelled a great deal from town to town. The lesson for this Sunday deals with Joseph's feast for his brethren, so that the Simnel cake feast was very appropriate, i ' In Christchurcn at many of the churches and at the Young Men's i Christian Association, special ari- i dresses will be given to-morrow week, j P/tany people will, as they have done j before, wear the white flower as a mark of their respect for the day, and what it means. It is a day on which mothers are honoured in the same way as national heroes.