A Short act of worship for Mothering Sunday

On this 4th sunday in Lent, we celebrate Mothering Sunday. Outside of church circles, this has become 'Mother's Day'. And while it is a day to give thanks for and celebrate mothers, on this day when various restrictions and advice on social-distancing and self-isolation prevent us from observing this day in ways that we normally would, we can still celebrate the love of God, manifest in the qualities of caring, supporting and nurturing. 

A Short act of worship for Mothering Sunday (Lent 4)

Opening Prayer

Heavenly Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth takes its name, bless us, we pray, as we gather in your presence. 

Bless our time with you. 

Take away distractions from our hearts and minds.

May our thoughts and reflections be acceptable to you. 

We come in confidence to worship you, praise you and adore you.

Blessed are you forever, Eternal God.

Amen

A prayer of thanksgiving for mothers*

We praise you, our God, 

for all mothers who have loved and laughed and laboured as they cared for their children.

Blessed be God for ever.

We praise you, our God, 

for all mothers who have wept in sorrow and joy for their children.

Blessed be God for ever.

We praise you, our God, 

for Jesus, born of a woman and nurtured in her love, and for Mary, a reminder of your patient, waiting love.

Blessed be God for ever.

A time for silent confession

God knows our hearts and our minds, our innermost thoughts and desires. Let us thank him for his Spirit who convicts us and for Jesus who forgives us

silence

Thanks be to God. Amen 

Today's gospel passage:    John 19:25-27 (NRSV)

25 ...Meanwhile, standing near the cross of Jesus were his mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. 26 When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing beside her, he said to his mother, “Woman, here is your son.” 27 Then he said to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” And from that hour the disciple took her into his own home.

A Reflection

This year, Mothering Sunday (or Mother's Day, if you want) is very different from anything we have known. On a day when families visit mothers, pamper them, take them out, cook them a special meal, we find ourselves governed by strict guidance on social interaction. On a day when most restaurants will be booked to capacity and buzzing with life, laughter and love, they will be strangely silent and their doors shut. COVID-19 is making its presence felt in every sphere of our lives, yet again disrupting families celebrating the love, compassion and nuture of mothers.  

In this context, today's gospel passage is powerful as it is poignant. On one level, it records the words of a a dying son to his mourning mother and distressed disciple, a conversation that overflows with love and compassion; on another level, these words of Jesus to his mother Mary and his beloved disciple are the words of a Suffering Saviour to a Hurting Humanity.

Even in his dying agony, Jesus remained concerned about the wellbeing and future provision of his mother above and beyond his own suffering. When he said to her about his disciple John: "Here is your son", he ensured that despite losing a son, she was gaining a son. She could still be a mother; she would still have a son to love, nuture and care for; she would still be able to express her maternal instinct in loving the one her beloved son asked her to love. He preserved her maternal identity. 

Equally, when he said to his disciple John: "here is your mother", he gave him the solemn responsibility to take Mary as his own mother, so that when Jesus died, she would not be left on her own. In early Jewish society, when a woman had no male member of family (normally her husband, or in the absence of a husband, her son) to protect her and provide for her, her place in society was compromised. Thus, in committing her to the care of his beloved disciple, he again preserves her maternal identity and her place in society by providing her with a son, a family, and a life. 

On this mothering sunday, we encounter Mary and the beloved disciple John stricken with grief, watching Jesus die. As his life slipped away from him, the world for Mary and John became a darker place by the moment. Imagine their sense of loss and despair and hopelessness. The fear of how to face life, of how different things were going to be was very real to them. But they continued to look at the one on the cross because to turn away from the cross was to turn away into a unknown future without Christ. And as they looked, the suffering Christ gazed down on them compassionately and lovingly, and spoke words of comfort and restoration to them. He understood their fear and pain, their grief and distress. From the cross came words of reassurance and hope. The Saviour was in control.

On this mothering sunday / Mother's Day when relating with each other socially is severely restricted by distancing and isolation, when our hands are tied and we cannot celebrate love and nurture and compassion on this particular day more than any other as we normally would, look to the cross and experience the love and care and compassion. Christ our Saviour knows our fear and pain and confusion as the way we live our lives changes daily. Christ our Saviour sees our suffering; he knows we are hurting, isolated, scared at what the future holds.

He speaks words of love and nuture and compassion into our fears and our pain. He unites and strenghtens families in whatever they are going through or experiencing today. 

The promise remains that darkness will give way to light, fear to hope, and the cross to victory and resurrection. 

Amen

Prayers of Intercession (taken from  2010(C) ThisisChurch.com)

Together we offer to our loving God our prayers and petitions for the needs of the world and ourselves.

This day we pray especially for mothers and for stepmothers, grandmothers, godmothers, and all those women who have loved and laughed, wept and worked to care for others. 

We prayer that God will bless all parents and all carers and strengthen those families living under stress in these uncertain times. 

We acknowlege before you, Lord, that this day is not a celebration, but a time of heartache for many -  may they have the comfort of knowing that your love for them is constant, your understanding is perfect, your compassion is never-ending

Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

Loving God, we pray for the elderly, the vulnerable and those living with serious illness. We pray for those who love them and struggle as they witness their loved ones’ diminishing health and daily challenges. 

We pray for those who mourn. Jesus Christ laid down his life for us, as we remember all those who have died.....  

Almighty God is our eternal mother and father, we entrust to God every mother’s child who has died thinking especially of. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
and we pray that all those departed will rest in peace and rise in glory.

Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

A Prayer for the Coronavirus Pandemic  [ 21/03/20](by Revd. Paul Davis, Chair of the Lancashire Methodist District)

     Gracious God,

     We pray for your world, your people and your church,

     for governments as they seek the best action

     we ask your blessing on our health professionals as they seek to 
     care for those who are ill,
     for those worried about money and food,

     we pray for families kept apart by distancing or isolation,

     for those who will struggle without meeting for worship 
     together tomorrow,

     for those leading worship that will be live streamed,

     for a sense of calm among the challenges we face.

     Holy Spirit,

     fill us with your power 

     that in these strange circumstances

     we can continue to be a people of faith hope and love.

     Lord Jesus, who gave himself for us,

     in this time of Lent we pray for the discipline to remember your love,

     to show that love and to help our neighbours, families and others,

     in your name we pray.

     Amen

      Merciful Father accept these prayers for the sake of your Son, our           Saviour, Jesus Christ, Amen.

     The Blessing*

     May God, who gave birth to all creation,bless us:
     may God, who became incarnate by an earthly mother, bless us:
     may God, who broods as a mother over her children, bless us.
     May almighty God bless us:
     Father, Son and Holy Spirit now and for ever. Amen. 

From: Services and Prayers for the Church of England (2000) and New Patterns of Worship (2002), © The Archbishops’ Council 2000 / 2002