Chalice Lighting
Margery MacKay 27.3.2022
I am lighting the Peace candle today for two things, not unconnected.
This is Mother’s Day. So I am lighting the Peace candle for all mothers and those who mother. The word mother comes from the Old English word modor. The verb form of modor meant “to take care of and the dictionary says that to mother means to treat as a mother would be expected to treat her child, to nurture, to cherish, to protect, to care for, to look after to support, to help.
Today in our service of worship we are also looking at the charity “the Welcoming.” Charitable organisations primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being for example educational, religious or other activities serving the public interest or common good. Charities have been around for thousands of years and instances of charitable acts are known in ancient civilizations dating as far back as 2,500 BCE . The oldest recorded charities in the UK date back to the twelve century. Many of the early charities were founded by religious groups offering alms to the poor and wealthy families offering funds, sometimes with strings attached. During the Enlightenment and Victorian ages charitable organisations developed further including the idea of them supporting campaigns for reform. Many Unitarians were involved in charitable work at this time. Gradually government took over responsibility for many aspects of society’s wellbeing.
Many world religions have specific obligations to give charity. Attitudes as to how we see charitable giving have changed for the better and charitable organisations are now regulated. The Gofundme statistics say that in 2021 Ireland was the most generous country per capita for giving. The UK came about fifth. Edinburgh was about the sixth most generous city in the UK. In Scotland about 74% of the population are involved with charities in some way. Not everyone can afford to give money. It is not just about giving financially but about volunteering and taking part in charitable activities. In these difficult times Charities are more important than ever, as we are currently seeing in relation to the Ukraine.
I light the peace candle in honour of mothers and all who mother, all who work with charities often in difficult circumstances and support charities in all kinds of ways.