Long tradition of Mothering Sunday

We all know that Mothering Sunday is the day set aside when we celebrate our mothers and all they mean to us.

It is an opportunity to show our gratitude for their love and support by giving gifts such as chocolates or flowers, or in pre-Covid times, taking them out for a meal.

But how many people actually know the origins of Mothering Sunday which traditionally takes place in the UK on the fourth Sunday in Lent - exactly three weeks before Easter Sunday?

It is thought the roots of Mothering Sunday go as far back as the ancient Greeks who would hold festivals of worship for Rhea, the Mother of the Gods and Goddesses, every spring.

Mothering Sunday dates back to the 16th century. It had a religious purpose and was originally a day to honour and give thanks to the Virgin Mary, also known as Mother Mary.

On that day Christians historically visited their mother church - the church in which they had been baptised.

Through the years the day became one to celebrate all mothers. By the start of the 20th century it was beginning to wane in popularity but came back to prominence again during the war.

Vicar’s daughter Constance Penswick-Smith (1901-1938) did much to revive the tradition of Mothering Sunday as a religious celebration over and against the secular Mother’s Day established in the USA in 1907.

She established The Society for the Observation of Mothering Sunday and worked hard to revive the day.

Now Mothering Sunday and Mother’s Day - which technically speaking was an unrelated American event - are widely regarded as one and the same.

Do you want to respond to this article? If so, click here to submit your thoughts and they may be published in print.