Our current age frequently gives short shrift to the value and dignity of motherhood. Many women fail to see this value and dignity in their babies or in being a mother. 

We know, of course, that it is the mother who bears the child and nurtures her baby prior to birth and after. She is the central figure in that baby’s prenatal life, and hopefully in her life after birth as well. There are obvious exceptions to this, but in the normal course of events, mothers are the heroines who literally lay it all on the line to bear children. 

Being a mother requires the selfless juggling of priorities, which often means that the expectant mother puts her dreams on hold so that she can offer herself completely to the rearing of the child she carries within her. She sometimes must forgo a career move or spend less time on her education or even drive her husband a bit nuts with her mood swings. But she experiences all of these things because she knows that, for the time being, she chooses to welcome someone into her life who depends on her for everything, both before and after birth. This is the beauty, the challenge, and the mystique of motherhood. 

Our Lord Jesus Christ came into this world because His mother, Mary, said yes to the archangel, who announced that God had chosen her to be the mother of His Son. Mary’s radical Christian humility is not accidental. It is an example of her total dedication to accomplishing God’s will, and she is the perfect example of motherhood, one we should emulate with our own yes to our children and to God.

Yet in our world today, there are mounting pressures on women to forgo having children, to eliminate pregnancy by deadly acts, or to otherwise press her to make decisions that are rarely in her best interest and that result in the demise of her baby. 

Whether we like to admit it or not, women are physiologically designed to bear children. Pregnancy is an event that only a woman can experience, yet it is a temporary situation that many in our world would prefer to eliminate, ignore, or destroy.

So we ask ourselves a question: What would the world be like if most women opted to avoid, eliminate or disdain pregnancy? 

Our civilization could not survive. Or at least it could not survive long. 

Contemplating motherhood reminds me of the insightful words of Cardinal Joseph Mindszenty, who once said:

The most important person on earth is a mother. She cannot claim the honor of having built Notre Dame Cathedral. She need not. She has built something more magnificent than any cathedral — a dwelling for an immortal soul, the tiny perfection of her baby’s body. ... The angels have not been blessed with such a grace. They cannot share in God’s creative miracle to bring new saints to heaven. Only a human mother can. Mothers are closer to God the Creator than any other creature; God joins forces with mothers in performing this act of creation. ... What on God’s good earth is more glorious than this: to be a mother?

This quote pays homage to the gift of motherhood, and it expresses quite beautifully why the world needs mothers. Yet I am often challenged by people of alternative opinions who say, “What do you know about it? You’re a senior citizen, and the world has changed.”

To such silliness, I just smile and say, “Even though I am old and have had my family, the situation has not changed. The world needs mothers now more than ever.”

Motherhood is an incredible gift given by God because children are incredible gifts given by God. We should embrace, respect, cherish, and protect both moms and babies. Our future depends on the love of mothers and the love for mothers.

Thus, as the mother of three and grandmother of 13, I say thank you to mothers — one and all.