The second Sunday in May, both in Greece and in many other countries, is dedicated to mothers. So this year, Mother’s Day is celebrated today, Sunday, May 11.

Originally in Greece Mother’s Day was associated with the Feast of the Lord’s Supper and was therefore celebrated on February 2. Then the Orthodox Church celebrates the Virgin Mary and Joseph taking the 40-day-old Jesus to the Temple for a blessing, something that Christian mothers still do today.

The parallel celebration of the mother began in 1929 with obvious symbolism. However, during the 1960s, the celebration faded and the westernized custom of celebrating the second Sunday in May was reinforced, with Greece following other European countries and the United States.

How the celebration of motherhood was established

The modern celebration was established in the 20th century in the United States. American Ann Maria Reeves Jarvis first organized a movement in 1865 called Mothers Friendships Day and meetings called Mothers Day Meetings, in which mothers exchanged views and experiences.

In 1870, Julia Ward Howe organized a peace gathering of mothers with the slogan peace and motherhood with the aim that children should not be sent to war.