Collect: Almighty God, who showest to those who are in error the light of thy truth, to the intent that they may return into the way or righteousness; Grant unto all those who are admitted into the fellowship of Christ’s Religion, that they may avoid those things that are contrary to their profession, and follow all such things as are agreeable to the same; through our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

(There are no saints on the Ordo Calendar this week).

Homely Links

Mother’s Day Coloring Page

Michelle Abernathy has created a Mother’s Day coloring page from a larger painting she is working on. She explained to me that the “Woman of Perpetual Motherhood” is meant to encompass all senses of motherhood: biological, adoptive, spiritual. When she spoke about it to me, it reminded me of the prayer our priest, Fr. Wayne, prays on Mother’s Day (which I am always thankful for, in light of my friends dealing with infertility or who struggle with Mother’s Day for any other reason).

Prayer for Mothers

Our gracious and loving Father, in wisdom Thou didst mysteriously make us male and female in Thine image and after Thy likeness, and Thou didst crown Thy creation with the gift of Woman, and Eve the mother of all living.

Today we remember with thanksgiving all who have lived in the calling of motherhood, whether mothers by natural conception or in adoption. For their love, care, nurture, and many sacrifices we are heartily thankful, and ask that as they have blessed, Thou wilt return Thy blessings upon them.

For those who have miscarried or later lost a child through happenstance, accident, or illness, may Thy many consolations attend them, and may they see how they have been mothers to us all through their endurance and faith.

For those married who have not yet conceived, as with Sarah, Rebekah, and Rachael, Hannah, and Elizabeth, graciously look upon the longings of their hearts, and as it pleases Thee, at the right time, we ask that Thou wouldst grant them their desire.

For all girls and young women who may one day marry and by Thy gracious hand bear children of their own, we ask Thee to prepare them for that time in Thy gracious providence.

And lastly we pray with all thanks for the faithful love of all who are, or have been, spiritual mothers, who have cared for the lives of spiritual children in the Church, and through whose faithfulness and counsel, we have received encouragement, wisdom, and good examples. Bless them this day as well; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Click here to download the pdf of the Mother’s Day coloring page.

Eastertide Collects

Thanks to Andrew Taylor for creating a printable for the collects of Eastertide. He emailed them to us and wrote, “The printable collects for Advent, Epiphany, and Lent have been a beautiful boon to our family.  I printed them out on cardstock and have them placed where we can read them daily.  They have been so helpful that I created printable collects for Eastertide in your same style.”

Here is the link to download the Eastertide collects printable. Thanks, Andrew! (Also, thanks for letting us know when a resource is helpful to you. Sometimes, it’s hard for us to know what we should continue in, so it’s always nice to know what resources you are using.)

Anglican Home/Windows into Meaningful Home (I know, I should really decide on a title) Series

Thanks to Amy Rogers Hays for her contribution to our first post in this series: A Window into Amy’s Home

We’ll be continuing our series with several great posts in the upcoming weeks. I imagine this will be an ongoing series here, so we look forward to your contributions. If you missed it, here is a description:

 A little while ago, we shared a favorite quote from G.K. Chesterton:⁣ “It is the main earthly business of a human being to make his home, and the immediate surroundings of his home, as symbolic and significant to his own imagination as he can.” ⁣⁣With that quote in mind, we are looking for guest posts where you show us how you follow Chesterton’s advice and make your home “symbolic and significant” to the imagination. What art do you have on your walls? Do you have a home altar/little oratory? A special garden? We are not looking for perfect homes or professional photography — just ordinary inspiration, a window into Anglican homes decorated with symbol and meaning. ⁣
⁣⁣
So, if you’d be ever so kind, send in your posts with photos and captions to thehomelyhours@gmail.com (We would love posts that come from varieties of situations — homes or apartments, etc. and it also doesn’t have to be a full “house tour.” If you just have one photo to share, we’d also like that.). ⁣

Rogation Sunday

Rogation Sunday is in two weeks. What do you do at your church? We generally have a blessing of the seeds on Sunday and then, on the Wednesday following, we process around our church’s neighborhood. Here is what I wrote about my first time “Beating the Bounds:”

I remember the first time I participated in our church’s Rogation Day “Beating of the Bounds.” I was deeply impressed by the way that the Rogation Days took seriously the life of the body in the world. Our church is located in an inner-city depressed neighborhood, so it looks a little odd to have a priest, acolytes, and parishioners processing around the neighborhood with the crucifix, praying for gardens and chanting psalms. But, somehow, despite feeling incongruous, participating in this tradition also felt holy and joyful.

You can read more about the Rogation Days here. 

Also, one way to celebrate the days with your family is by printing out this Rogation Prayer Bunting that Bley designed.  Do any of you have a special “Rammalation Biscuit” recipe? (No one seems to have any idea what these were, though the word “rammalation” most likely derives from “perambulation.) I keep playing with the idea of holding a “Rammalation Biscuit” contest at our church where we vote and establish our official recipe. Doesn’t that sound fun? (Or, it could just completely flop. But, if you realize that “biscuit” can also refer to cookies, it changes the game a bit).