An Asian Christian woman living in London blogging about the everyday issues of religion

Sunday 3 April 2011

Happy Mother's Day-What does being a Christian mum mean to you?

I am a Motherhood Activist and spoke at an international conference recently about the subjectivity of Motherhood. The traits of a good mother are always named as: being a good nurturer, being always there for your child, being supportive, endlessly patient, being loving all the time, always putting your child first over everything else and providing an environment of constant activity and fun.
The world we live in puts so much pressure on Mothers: mothers who don't work are expected to be constantly sacrificial towards the needs of their children because if mothers don't work then they must have all the time in the world to tend to their children; and mothers who do work must suffer the guilt of being away from the family home and never be bold enough to proclaim that work is an important part of her life. Religion/Christianity adds another layer of responsibility because Motherhood is seen as being next to Sainthood. The ideals of being a Christian Mom in analysed theology would have mothers competing with God to sit on the throne.
In my experience being a Christian Mum is a gift from God and, consequently, I truly believe that God allows us to be subjective in our approach to mothering but without us faltering from the paramount role of introducing God into our children's lives. Much of what is touted as 'Christian Mum' theories is no different from non-religious mummy instructions. Mother's Day should be about appraising our roles as Christian Mothers and realising that love and a level of parental control that provides boundaries for your children should be the main elements of your mothering framework. Weave your own motherhood story out of this and throw away the prescriptive writings on what you should and shouldn't be doing. I did it My Way and here's my child: http://libdemchild.blogspot.com/
However, I am always mindful of the luxury mothers in the Western world have to contemplate on how and why we do what we do and, so, I especially ask for your prayers for those mothers in parts of the world who are watching their children die through extreme poverty. These mothers who manage to cling on to their faith are the true Christian Mums.
Happy Mother's Day.  

2 comments:

  1. Please not that your use of the term "Mother's Day," as opposed to "Mothering Sunday" has been noted and recorded and will count against you for the rest of eternity.

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  2. As penance, I will have to deprive myself of eating curries for a week...no, a month.

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