Amid the ruinous aftermath of the first Civil War, in 1868, Anne Reeves Jarvis of West Virginia conceived the idea of setting aside a day for a badly wounded nation to begin to heal, by arranging for grieving mothers of the Confederacy and of the Union to begin the arduous journey of finding an enduring place of reconciliation, both having been torn apart at the loss or the maiming of their children, in battle or amid the brutality that accompanied that madness.

Anne had high hopes that each sharing their heart-wrenching stories would give birth to a bond inseparable, paving the way to rebuild a shattered nation for every mother’s child, especially former slaves left to struggle to make their way on their own. Unfortunately, Anne spent the rest of her days fighting an onslaught of relentless commercialization, reducing her hopeful vision to the obligatory box of chocolates, sentimental card, and/or plant. Though these naturally have their place, finding a way to mend the ravages of racist hatred proved to be too hard a sell.

Continuing to carry the sacred torch of meaningful justice, outspoken abolitionist and composer Julia Ward Howe of Framingham, of “Battle Hymn of the Republic” fame, advanced the brilliant idea of a “Mother’s Peace Day,” to be held every second of June. The genius of their efforts lay in the firm conviction that only a mother’s perspective could save the children of the nation from further senseless aggression.

Willing to face the chance of dying to bear precious lives, delivering their own from the categorically demonic harm of war would be utmost — on every side, to be sure — were their life-affirming stance to be in control of policy, thereby disarming the arrogantly proud for whom “collateral damage” is a necessary evil, no matter how pyrrhic the victory.

Fast-forwarding to our century, we must never forget that it was the fiercely insistent protests of mothers in America to demand an end to above-ground nuclear testing, once it became clear that the toxic, cancerous radioactive particles, strontium-90 among the worst of the lethal array, spread across the country, inevitably finding their way to the milk on store shelves. Their historic achievement led to increased efforts toward the still terribly needed goal of the eventual global abolition of all nuclear arms.

This amazing milestone, although well over 30 years ago, continues to be a brave marching banner over the power mothers possess, advocating for a world where every parent no longer fears their young ingesting airborne radioactive-related diseases.

What can we do to help our mothers once again raise the alarm of today’s nuclear standoff? Locally, on the Saturday before Mother’s Day, May 13, greater Northampton’s Nuclear Free Future Coalition (Nuclear Ban.US), will be leading a Peace-In at the entry to Cracker Barrel Alley on Main Street from 1 to 3 p.m. Our focus will be imagining the unthinkable consequences of a nuclear attack, specifically in western Massachusetts.

We will be on hand to make us aware of the five major targets close to us. Come and be informed as we seek ways to do all we can, legislatively as well as personally, to work to ensure that nothing close to this will calamitously transpire.

Nationally, our Rep. Jim McGovern continues to strive to bring to the floor House Resolution 77 (please convey your support). In the commonwealth, Sen. Jo Comerford and Rep. Lindsey Sabadosa are promoting, with your help and mine, S.B. 1487 and 1488, creating an advisory Nuclear Commission to assess this pressing issue’s impact on every mother’s child, regardless of the ever-deepening political divide.

My prayer is that every mother of every religion, ethnicity or creed together acknowledge and act, given the tremendous emotional and life-saving resources they bring to the table, for the birth of a Mother’s Day-365, reviving Anne and Julia’s cause divine, in the maternal spirit of Sir Walter Scott’s poem of 1825, “Hymn of the Virgin” (the third stanza of this Ave Maria set to the now familiar, immortal lieder, of Franz Shubert):

… Ave Maria! ...

Foul demons of the earth and air …

Shall flee before thy presence fair.

We bow us to our lot of care,

Beneath thy guidance reconciled;

Hear for a maid a maiden’s prayer,

And for a father hear a child!

Ave Maria!

Rev. Peter Kakos of Northampton  is a member of the Nuclear Free Future Coalition and First Churches.]]>