Who is your favorite mother-saint? Is it Zélie Martin, mother of St. Thérèse of Lisieux and her fellow Carmelite sisters? Maybe it is Dorothy Day, writer and foundress of the worldwide Catholic Worker movement and mother to daughter, Tamar. In my bleary-eyed days of new motherhood, I became quite close to St. Gianna, doctor and mother of four who selflessly chose life for her daughter despite great risk to her own health.
Our Church holds up many examples of holy mothers who served God and their families with love, joy, and humility. At the same time, she seems to have little to say on the vocation of motherhood or what exactly it means to be a mother. Many saints have reflected on the meaning of their vocations to the priesthood and religious life. Our faith has a rich fountain of theology on the meaning of the priesthood and its connections to Christ’s sacrificial love for the Church. Ancient and contemporary texts alike reflect on the many rules of life and paths to holiness within various consecrated religious communities. But when it comes to motherhood, women looking for guidance on pursuing holiness through motherhood are more likely to find themselves in a theological desert than in an oasis of spiritual enrichment.
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