God, Our Mother

How amazing is a Mother?  How special her place.  How without equal she is.  How irreplaceable what she does. 

I recall hearing the “Grown-Ups” in my family likening God to a Mother. 

When something goes wrong and you need something to blurt out, it is either an “Ay Amá – Oh Mother,” or an “Ay Dios Mio – Oh My God!” 

When you’re startled, frightened or need saving, you cry out “Mamá, Amá – Mother, Mom,” or “Dios Mio – My Lord, My God!”

And not only do we, in Spanish, liken a Mother to God, but in this Sunday’s First Reading from the book of the Prophet Isaiah, God also assumes the role of a Mother:

Rejoice with Jerusalem,
 and be glad for her,
 all you who love her;
 rejoice with her in joy,
 all you who mourn over her –
 that you may nurse and be satisfied
 from her consoling breast;
 that you may drink deeply with delight
 from her glorious bosom.
  For thus says the Lord:
 “I will extend prosperity to her like a river,
 and the wealth of nations like an overflowing stream;
 and you shall nurse and be carried on her arm,
 and dandled on her knees.
  As a mother comforts her child,
 so I will comfort you;
 you shall be comforted in Jerusalem.
  You shall see, and your heart shall rejoice;
 your bodies shall flourish like the grass;
 and it shall be known
 that the hand of the Lord is with his servants” (66:10-14).

As I said, how Important, how Unique, how Special, how irreplaceable is a Mother.  A true Masterpiece by our Lord. 

Moreover, a Mother is another bit of God on Earth.  Yes, we have Priests, but they can’t hold us, rock us, coddle us, caress our hair as we fall asleep at night.  A Mother is a nurturing, nourishing, tender embodiment of our Lord that we can kiss, hug and love not just when we’re Babies, but as we grow up and once we’re grown. 

No matter how old we get, how much we think we know, we will always be our Mothers’ Babies.  By the same token, no matter how independent we become, how much we believe we can go it alone, God is always there for and with us.

Having said all of this, why then do we forget our Mother’s Birthday?  Why do we not call?  How can we put them in homes?  Why do we shun their love and care?

For the same reason we stray from God.  We are Arrogant.  We are Selfish.  We take the easy road, the road filled with Temptations, the road that hurts God, our families, ourselves. 

Maybe, just maybe, if we start by appreciating Mom, then maybe we can find our way to God easier…Maybe…

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