Mothers’ Union Devotion Wednesday 24th March 2021

Today is an in-between sort of day in a week of major commemorations. Tomorrow is Lady Day where we remember and give thanks for the courage of Mary as she said Yes. Yes, to being the Mother of our Lord. Yes, to allowing God’s plans for the salvation of the world to begin. Although we are not able to gather in Llandaff Cathedral for our annual Quiet day, there will be a service of celebration for Lady Day, the Feast of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, posted on Facebook at 2pm. A time to reflect on Mary’s life and how she speaks to us today. On Sunday (Palm Sunday), we celebrate her son’s triumphant entry into Jerusalem. An entrance marked by crowds cheering and proclaiming ‘Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!’ Events from two millennia ago, which affect each of our lives individually on a daily basis, even if sometimes, we are not particularly conscious about it.

Yesterday, as a nation we marked a quite different event – the one-year anniversary of the first complete lockdown in the fight to reduce transmission of the Corona virus which causes Covid-19. During the past year we have seen and experienced much loss. Loss of freedoms that we took for granted. Freedom to see our friends and families, freedom of movement, freedom to gather as Mothers’ Union branches or church congregations. We have also experienced the loss of people, over 126,000 death in the United Kingdom. Each of these are precious individuals whose untimely death has been a tragedy for all those who loved and cherished them. Our usual traditions for marking the passing of a life have been suspended. Final goodbyes have been curtailed, funerals have been small and many people who wish to provide comfort have been unable to do so physically. So yesterday gave us an opportunity as a nation to remember with a National Day of Reflection organised by the end-of-life charity Marie Curie. To give thanks for those who have died and to look ahead in hope for a brighter future.

Our faith gives us the confidence to find hope for a brighter future in the lives of Mary and Jesus, despite all we have gone through in the past year. That looking backward can give us the confidence to face the future. A future that is brighter with the amazing rollout of the vaccine and the gradual lifting of lockdown. Small steps towards regaining our self-confidence – a haircut, a garden visit with a family member or friend, a trip to a garden centre, the opportunity to attend a church service this Easter Sunday. To some these might seem like small things, but our national psyche tells us that “Doing the Little Things” can bring the biggest amount of comfort to ourselves and the people we encounter.

With all my love and prayers

Revd Sandra