Famous Mothers On the Occasion of Mother’s Day
It is difficult to record, in such a short article, all the famous women in the world—whether from the Holy Bible, Church history, or among the spiritual mothers of monasticism.
However, we will mention only some examples here and leave the subject for a detailed book suitable for Mother’s Day.
Famous Mothers in the Holy Bible:
The Virgin Saint Mary is the greatest and holiest of mothers; she is the Mother of God, whom all generations shall call blessed.
Eve is the mother of all humanity, the first mother. She was called “Eve” because she is the mother of all living.
Jochebed, the mother of three saints: Moses the Prophet, who gave the Law and Commandments; Aaron, the first High Priest; and Miriam the Prophetess.
Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist, the greatest among those born of women.
Hannah, the mother of Samuel the Prophet, the first prophet to anoint kings by the command of the Lord.
Mary, the mother of John who is called Mark—Saint Mark the Apostle—whose house became the first church in the world (Acts 12:12).
The wife of Manoah, the mother of Samson the Mighty, the strongest man known in history (Judges 13).
Bathsheba, the wife of King David and mother of Solomon the Wise, the wisest man on earth, who wrote many proverbs and several books of the Holy Bible.
The mother who refused to have her child cut in two before King Solomon, by which her true motherhood was revealed (1 Kings 3:26).
Eunice, the mother of Saint Timothy, the disciple of Saint Paul, and her mother Lois, who both handed down their sincere faith to this saint (2 Timothy 1:4).
Can we ever count all the mothers whose stories were recorded in the Bible? We have only mentioned these as examples.
Famous Mothers in Church History:
Saint Monica, the mother of Saint Augustine, who struggled with tears for many years for the salvation of her son—and succeeded.
Saint Emmelia, the mother of four saints: Saint Basil the Great, Archbishop of Caesarea in Cappadocia; Saint Gregory, Bishop of Nyssa; Saint Peter, Bishop of Sebaste; and Saint Macrina, the spiritual mother and guide of her saintly brothers.
The mothers of the holy martyrs, who encouraged their children to accept martyrdom—such as the mother who cast her child among the children of Bethlehem, and the mother whose five sons were slain upon her lap. We proudly remember here Saint Dolagy, Saint Rebecca, and Saint Julitta, the mother of the child martyr Saint Kyriakos.
The mother of the six monks who were consecrated together to monasticism, among whom were Saint Pimen and Saint Job and their brothers.
Famous Mothers in Monasticism:
These are the women who headed convents and led monastic lives, such as Saint Demiana, who was the mother of forty virgins; Saint Melania, who was the head of a convent in Jerusalem; and Saint Paula with her daughter Saint Eustochium, who both headed a convent in Bethlehem; and also Saint Sarah.
Famous Mothers in General History:
Beyond the history of saints, the Church, and the Holy Bible, there are also famous mothers who presented to the world great sons whose greatness is owed to their mothers. The full study of this topic is left for future research.
Article by His Holiness Pope Shenouda III – El-Keraza Magazine, Year 10 – Issue 12 – March 23, 1979
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