Mother’s day or Mothering Sunday

You probably use Mothering Sunday and Mother’s day interchangeably; however, they are not the same.

Mothering Sunday or Mother’s Day is a celebration of mothers and the maternal bond, and traditionally children give flowers, presents and cards to their mothers, and other maternal figures such as grandmothers, stepmothers and mothers-in-law.

Mothering Sunday is often referred to as “Mother’s Day” even though it is an unrelated celebration. It is always held on the fourth Sunday of Lent which is exactly three weeks before Easter Sunday and usually falls in the second half of March or early April. Mother’s Day in the United States is annually held on the second Sunday of May.

Early Mother’s Day celebrations can be dated back to the spring celebrations to honor Rhea, the Mother of the gods, in ancient Greek civilization, according to some sources. Later, Mothering Sunday in the United Kingdom was traditionally a day for people to visit the church where they were baptized, although it now also celebrates motherhood in modern times.
The day has long been associated with mothers, and family. For centuries it was custom for people to return home to their ‘mother’ church on Laetare Sunday – the middle of Lent. Those who did so were said to have gone ‘a-mothering’. The day often turned into a family reunion and a chance for children working away from home – often domestic servants – to spend time with their mothers.

The United Kingdom celebrates Mothering Sunday, which falls on 6th March in 2016. This holiday has its roots in the church and was originally unrelated to the American holiday. As a result of the influence of the American Mother’s Day, Mothering Sunday transformed into the tradition of showing appreciation to one’s mother.
Many blame the USA for introducing the name Mother’s Day to Britain and turning it into a commercial affair.

The modern-day origins of Mother’s Day can be attributed to two women – Julia Ward Howe and Anna Jarvis, who were important in establishing the tradition in the United States. Around 1870, Julia Ward Howe called for Mother’s Day to be celebrated each year. It continued to be held in Boston for about 10 years under her sponsorship, but died out after that.

In 1907, Anna Jarvis held a private Mother’s Day celebration in memory of her mother, Ann Jarvis, in Grafton, West Virginia. In 1908, she played a key role in arranging a church service that attracted 407 children and their mothers. A Mother’s Day International Association was founded in 1912 to promote the holiday in other countries. Mother’s Day has grown increasingly popular since then.

Many people believe that Mother’s Day is now largely commercialised, with card companies, flower shops, jewelry stores, gift shops, restaurants, hotels, and department stores advertising promotions and special deals for this event. Anna Jarvis unsuccessfully filed a lawsuit to stop the over-commercialization of Mother’s Day.

Google have done a doodle to mark Mothering Sunday 2016, but this can only be seen in the UK and Ireland.

Lesson Learnt: Mothering Sunday is to the United Kingdom as Mother’s day is to America.

Additional Sources
telegraph.co.uk
timeanddate.com