I am told (but I am happy to be corrected) that the roots of Mothering Sunday lie in the way that apprentices were employed in the Middle Ages. Boys learning a trade and girls in service lived with their employers and were paid in kind for their labours. On Mothering Sunday they were released to return to their homes, to be with their parents, and part of their visit would be to go to church with their families, visiting Mother Church. There is a legend that the Simnel Cake, which has long been associated with Mothering Sunday, arose out of the argument between brother (Sim) and sister (Nell) how to bake a cake for their mother. One said that the cake should be boiled and the other said it should be baked. A true Simnel Cake is cooked both ways (apparently!).

There will be Simnel Cake for us to enjoy after the service this Sunday.