Christian Treat: inspiration from Mother’s Day and Father’s Day

Ann Reeves Jarvis was a Sunday school teacher with a goal to teach women how to care for their children.

After one lecture in 1876, Ann prayed that somebody would create a day commemorating mothers for their service for humanity.

Twelve-year-old Anna, Ann’s daughter, remembered that lecture.

Ann died in 1905, and Anna Jarvis, then in her 40s, promised that she would be the one to answer her mother’s prayer.

Anna wrote to Mark Twain, President Theodore Roosevelt and any other powerful politician she could think of to help her with her cause. She also sought the help of John Wanamaker, the Philadelphia businessman and her friend.

The first Mother’s Day service was on May 10, 1908 at St. Andrew’s Methodist Church in Grafton, W. Va.. Anna bought hundreds of carnations, her mother’s favorite flower, for the service. A bigger celebration was held that afternoon at Wanamaker’s auditorium in Pennsylvania, where Anna spoke.

Over the years, Anna embarked on a relentless letter-writing campaign to persuade governors of every state to declare the second Sunday of May — the closest Sunday to her mother’s death anniversary — Mother’s Day.

In 1914, President Woodrow Wilson issued a proclamation making Mother's Day the second Sunday in May.

Sonora Smart Dodd remembered one particular Mother’s Day sermon at the Central Methodist Episcopal Church in Spokane, Wash., on May 9, 1909. Mother’s Day had only been invented the year before, but the day had already spread across the nation.

Sonora approached her pastor who had extolled the virtues of mothers in his sermon. Remembering her dad, an Arkansas native who had fought for the Union during the Civil War, she approached her pastor after the service and said, “I liked everything you said about motherhood, but don’t you think father should have a special day, too?”

Perhaps Sonora’s determination to establish Father’s Day was inspired by Anna’s quest to create Mother’s Day.

Sonora’s dad was William Jackson Smart. As a married couple, William and Ellen Smart moved West when Sonora was a child. The two continued to grow their family. When Ellen died in 1898, William was left with six kids ranging in age from 16 to a newborn.

In a 1964 interview with the Spokesman-Review, Sonora shared that her dad took on the role of both father and mother. He continued being both mom and dad “with courage and selflessness until we were all in homes of our own.”

Father’s Day may have been a passing thought for some, but Dodd turned it into a reality. She circulated a petition around town. She garnered the support of the local YMCA and the Spokane Ministerial Association on her quest to build Father’s Day. To my delight as a single father who adopted five full siblings on June 17, 2022 and then became a foster father to the Fab 5’s now five-month-old brother this August, I smile with the news that on June 19, 1910, the Protestant churches of Spokane observed their first Father’s Day. Fatherhood-themed sermons filled the town, and churches awarded bouquets to men who were the oldest men in the congregation, or the father with the most children, or with the youngest child.

I thank Anna. I thank Sonora. The passion in their stories inspires me to replace the walking dead gore and sinisterism of October 31^st with something else. I call this replacement Christian Treat to honor my oldest child who created the name after passing what no nine-year-old should encounter on a front lawn decoration this year.

As I shared in last week’s column, I am over the evil that Halloween has become. In this column, I invite every Christian and every good-willed person to rally with me and step into light over darkness and joy in life over gory displays that pepper at this time of year.

I remain perplexed by Christians who say, “I don’t see Halloween as a big deal.” “I just look the other way,” and “It’s just a night. What really is the matter with this, anyway?”

Oof. This is evil alive. This is the walking dead. If you know Jesus, you know He walked to a cross so that we who follow Him know only life, not death.

In the United States alone, Americans spend close to 3.2 million dollars on decorating for the end of this month’s holiday. Only Christmas out earns it. Only New Year’s Eve and Super Bowl Sunday out party it.

I can’t take away the darkness of Halloween. I can, however, offer something else. WE can offer something else. I get that some (many?) churches are doing trunk or treat events in their parking lots this year. Hooray to all who are offering safe and good spaces for kids to dress in costume and get what I LOVE, which is candy. Truly, I thank you for offering a presence at this time of the year.

But let’s do more. October 31, 2023 is coming. Keep the costumes. Keep the candy. Yes and yes. But let’s speak where we have been silent.

Yes?

Beyond cutesy fall displays and bobbing for apples, Christian Treat is a way to offer what Christians should offer—love, safety, wellness and celebrations of joy. Give me one more week to write about what Christian Treat can be. Until then, offer suggestions! Send prayer! Share ideas!

I need until next week because I don’t know yet how Christians can speak to—and speak through—candy and costumes into fun and good things not just for kids but communities.

Christian Treat isn’t my idea alone. Let it be our idea together.