Family Sunday: “Better than Jewels”

Have you ever read about the origin of Mother’s Day? It is actually the brainchild of feminist social activist, author and poet Julia Ward Howe, back in 1870. The carnage of the American civil war was still fresh on everyone’s mind at that time, then the Franco-Prussian war began. Howe and many others had had enough of war, so Julia Ward Howe wrote the Mothers’ Day Proclamation, an appeal to women around the world to unite for peace.

Believing that women had a duty to use politics to shape their societies, what Howe wanted was a “Mothers’ Day for Peace,” but it didn’t happen. It wasn’t until 1908 that Mother’s Day came into fashion, but Julia Ward Howe’s passion was no longer associated with it. You can read Julia Ward Howe’s proclamation here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mother%27s_Day_Proclamation

So, this Sunday, we’ll look for Wisdom in Proverbs, she whose advice is “better than jewels,” more valuable than silver and gold… Is Wisdom/wisdom what the world needs right now? My head is brimming with thoughts on AI, Charles Darwin, the nature of families, the biblical figures of Naomi and Ruth, John, James, Simon and Andrew and others. We’ll see if all this can coalesce into a comprehensible sermon!

For our service on Sunday, the TUC Choir has prepared “Come in, Come in and Sit Down,” and there will be lots of lovely other music, including the Irish traditional melody, “Be Thou My Vision.”

In the meantime, read Proverbs 8:1-11 and ponder the following:

1.      Do you see similarities between the passion of Julia Ward Howe and how the figure of Wisdom is portrayed here?

2.      If you were to propose a holiday or annual celebration, what would it be?

Image: “Be Thou My Vision,” an abstract impression of the hymn of the same name, by Mike Moyers, from Art in the Christian Tradition, a project of the Vanderbilt Divinity Library, Nashville, TN. www.mikemoyersfineart.com.