Today is Mother’s Day, and I wanted to share something with you all. However, not being a mom myself, it is difficult to talk about the value of mothers through personal experience, so I had intended to use an anecdotal story to illustrate the character and nature of a mother, that we might be appreciative. After searching, I discovered that many of the stories out there are just that — stories. In my endeavor I turned to looking into nature to find illustrations. Alas, it was another set of purely anecdotal narratives that did not really bring to light the inexpressible truth that underlies my perspective of motherhood. This letter is my attempt to express my ineffable perspective on mothers.
The Hen and Her Brood
“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! Behold, your house is forsaken. And I tell you, you will not see me until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!’”
Let’s explore the instinctual behavior of hens to understand Jesus’ use of this analogy. Observations of hens describe how they gather their chicks by making soft, persistent clucking noises to call them close, then spreading their wings to create a warm, protective, and secure shelter. The mother hen uses this behavior to provide warmth, protect her chicks from danger, and keep them secure, especially at night or during stressful situations. If we focus specifically on the intention of the behavior — to “provide warmth and protect the children from danger and stressful situations” — we can see that the mother hen has a very real perception of danger: a reality she knows is going to affect herself and, more importantly, her chicks. We then see that, despite being in danger herself, her altruistic nature is revealed in that she hurries to protect her children.
Gathered Under His Wings
As Christians, we understand that humanity is on a path to annihilation. In the passage quoted, Jesus, realizing that we were on that path, joined us in our trek toward annihilation. In other verses in that chapter He speaks about the three days that He would be “performing cures” and “finishing His course,” and how He wanted to “shelter us under His wings as a hen would her brood” as He and we headed for danger — but we were not willing. But the story does not end there. Despite our not wanting to be sheltered, He continued on the path to annihilation, taking the annihilation on Himself to spare us. In other words, He gathered us under His wings despite our flagrant, stubborn refusal and stupidity. This act was the narrative that would help me express the ineffable truth about motherhood that I have witnessed in my life — in the actions of my grandmothers, my mothers, and other mothers around me, both near and far; women in general, who express this in their very nature, even to a degree without intention.
A Mother in the Storm
Let me tell you a personal story to illustrate this. I remember when my son was being diagnosed with autism, and how my soul was crushed when the doctor uttered the words, “he will always need you; he will not be able to survive on his own.” My hopes and dreams — a mountain I had built over years of anticipating life with my son — vanished like a candle being blown out. The unpredictability and danger of the future loomed over his mother, who was pregnant with our daughter at the time, over myself, and of course over our lovely son, who at that very moment was humming to himself and making clicking noises as he busily arranged his blocks in a line like a train, completely oblivious to the world shattering around him in that room.
Those words echoed in my head, and continue to do so to this day. I did what I had always done: I dove into deep denial of the danger of not dealing with the things around me, and left my whole family — especially our son — vulnerable to the danger that loomed over his life. Ignorance is bliss. I turned to distractions to escape the reality of the danger, shamelessly leaving our son to fend for himself. On the other hand, his mother, in full realization of the looming threats, while massively pregnant, fervently sought the help that was needed for our son, and never at any point faltered. It became difficult, very difficult, for her, and she faced annihilation so that our son would not have to. She courageously sheltered both our children and braved the storms, and continues to do so regardless of the utter distress it causes her on every side. Despite being constantly assaulted, she continues to cover the children under her wings.
Motherhood and the Cross
I tell you this story so that you may see the parallels between the nature of motherhood and Jesus. He covered us with His wings, despite our being unwilling to receive it. He continued to do so even in the face of His own complete and utter distress and ultimate annihilation — assaulted in every way by heaven and earth and evil. He stayed on the path of annihilation, and then stayed on the cross as hell itself was poured out on Him.
Made in His Image
In Genesis, God says that He made us in His image, male and female, so it stands to reason that our character and natural instincts are imbued in us, for they are part of the character of God. That motherly instinct of self-sacrifice, no matter the cost, is a characteristic of God. It resulted in everyone being saved.
To Glorify Is to Give Weight
Mother’s Day is a day to reflect on the love and sacrifice of our mothers. Let us also realize that the existence of the mother — her characteristics and her love — glorifies God. To “glorify” is to “give weight to.” It is a deep biblical and linguistic concept rooted in the Hebrew word for glory, kabhod (or kavod). In ancient Hebrew, the literal meaning of kabhod is “heavy” or “weight.” To give something “weight” is to recognize it as substantial, important, and central, rather than light, trivial, or fleeting. This leads to several layered meanings when applied to God. It means that the presence of mothers and their actions makes God real, significant, and central to our lives. That mothers exist and act the way they do in nature and in our human lives gives credence and glory to God. Jesus’ sacrifice and motherly actions glorified God.
The God Mothers Reflect
Therefore, while we take the time to be grateful for our amazing mothers and the women who act as mothers, and for what they do every day, let us remember the prodigal God whom mothers ultimately reflect. God asserts:
“Can a woman [mother] forget her nursing child, that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you. Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are continually before me.”
There is no doubt in anyone’s mind that a mother’s sacrificial love is incredibly amazing and life-sustaining. Despite the imperfection of humanity, we can see the magnificence of a mother’s love, both among animals and humans. We set aside a day to gaze at this magnificence and pay homage to it. We regard it as one of the highest orders of love on this planet, both among animals and humans.
Yet that amazing motherly love, in all its magnificence and life-sustaining power, is but a minuscule representation of the true nature of motherhood we find in God. The reference in the book of Isaiah helps us realize that, despite how amazing a mother here on earth is, we have a God in whom, through Jesus, we are shown the example of true motherhood in its purest and most perfect form. Jesus on the cross is the motherly act of God putting His wings over His brood to shield us from the ultimate danger that surrounds us — that undefeatable foe, our greatest and truest danger, which we all face unknowingly as we metaphorically continue to arrange our lives, like my son was doing while whistling away, completely oblivious to the ultimate death and destruction that was falling on us. Despite the fact that we continue to kill His prophets, stone those whom He sends to us, and disregard His sacrifice completely, He engraves us on the palms of His hands; and while hell and death were being poured on us, He covered His ungrateful brood under His gracious wings. Mothers truly are a great pointer to Jesus. Thank you, mothers, for being you, and for your incredible love for all of us.
A Closing Prayer
Thank you, Lord God, for creating mothers in your image and for glorifying yourself through them for our sake. Your motherly love for us, that you displayed on that cross, should not be forgotten, and we thank you that we have mothers to remind us of that selfless, magnificent act of love. We are all saved because you covered us in your wings and engraved us on your palms.