Mrs Francis Brinley & son Francis, John Smibert; 1729

FROM an outstanding Mother’s Day piece by Stella Morabito at The Federalist:

Motherhood is the first and last line of defense against totalitarianism. If you think this statement sounds over the top, you ought to ponder why the family has always been the ultimate target of tyrannical systems of government such as communism. Advocates of cultural Marxism tend to view families as akin to subversive cells that get in the way of centralized state power.

The driving force in each of those “cells” is a devoted flesh-and-blood mother who defends, nurtures, strengthens, and teaches her children well. She magnifies this power by teaming up with the child’s father in that effort. Such a family represents, at the most elemental level, the “little platoon” philosopher Edmund Burke referred to:

To be attached to the subdivision, to love the little platoon we belong to in society, is the first principle (the germ as it were) of public affections. It is the first link in the series by which we proceed towards a love to our country, and to mankind. The interest of that portion of social arrangement is a trust in the hands of all those who compose it; and as none but bad men would justify it in abuse, none but traitors would barter it away for their own personal advantage.

As healthy, cohesive families go forth into the world as little platoons, they are a force for goodwill and real justice in society, broadcasting by example and by good works into the culture at large. They begin with mothers who cultivate virtue and a sense of uniqueness in their children. In a very real sense, mothers are the ultimate force for de-centralizing and distributing power in society. Their influence sets virtuous communities in motion.

A mother begins this task as only a mother can: through the mysterious pull of love, by forging bonds of personal loyalty, and under cover of the hidden sphere of private life. Tyrants have openly targeted these positive forces at least since Karl Marx essentially declared them totally incompatible with socialism. Lately we see devoted mothers—particularly traditional, stay-at-home mothers—increasingly mocked and challenged as cultural throwbacks. Even President Obama has criticized them in policy speeches, including his 2015 State of the Union.

Countless examples illustrate the extraordinary impact of attentive mothers to thwart the forces of a tyrannical state. Some cases stand out. But most of the work is done quietly, through their teaching of faith, fairness, virtue, and goodwill. This groundwork mothers lay has a cumulative effect that supports wholeness over brokenness in human beings. Obviously that’s not good for any agenda propelled by resentment over understanding, or chaos over stability. [cont.]

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