MINISTRY FROM TWO POLES

Eternal God, on this day we lift up all mothers to you. Scripture has prepared us to recognize that by your grace, mothering takes many forms.

We lift up those . . .

… who have experienced joy and fulfillment in mothering

… who have known the pain of a child’s death

… who are facing motherhood again, or for the first time

… for whom childlessness represents a loss

… who have such unbounded love that they mother all God’s children

… who lament their separation from their children for whatever reason

… who mother those of the previous generation who are again childlike

… who are the previous generation loving extended families

Likewise, the experiences of being mothered are many and varied.

We lift up those …

… who have cherished memories of being mothered

… who may have suffered abuse, neglect or emotional harm

… who remember with joy being mothered by a broader community of women

… who have experienced, or are in the midst of, grief for the loss of a mother or mother figure

… who were adopted into the loving arms of a mother

… who may continue to experience estrangement from their mother

… who have been raised by their mother with deep, abiding love and respect for the feminine, including their own

… who in the image of God the Mother find faith and comfort.

God, we also lift up any experiences of motherhood or being mothered that have been left unspoken.