The Karachi Filipino community gathered together after Mass. Photo: Fr Elbert Balbastro
As a priest, I deeply appreciate the opportunity to journey with people from diverse walks of life. It is a grace to listen to their stories, witness their growth in faith, and observe their steadfast love for God and one another. The recent Mother’s Day celebration prompted me to reflect on the love and goodness of my mother, the mothers I have encountered in the Badin parish and ministry, and those in my life. Their experiences as mothers are often challenging, yet love endures. From these encounters, I am convinced that love is abundant and resilient, offering hope and connection across generations and circumstances.
On Mother’s Day, I presided over a Mass with the Filipino community in Karachi. Many in attendance were mothers, including many single mothers. The celebration became deeply moving when, before the final blessing, we invited all mothers to the front for prayers and blessings. Some wept as memories of the family they had left behind welled up. In conversations afterwards, several explained that although leaving loved ones, especially their children, was painful, they accepted the sacrifice for their children’s future. That willingness to endure hardship for their children’s well-being, putting their own happiness aside, struck me as the truest expression of love. A mother’s readiness to confront difficulties and sacrifice herself for her children’s betterment is a profound testament to maternal devotion.
The women in the Badin parish Rosary group are getting ready to pray the rosary. Photo: Fr Elbert Balbastro
Each Friday at the parish clinic, I noticed that most TB patients were women, particularly mothers. This did not surprise me, as women in the village are often deprived of basic needs. They typically eat last, after serving their husbands and children. If there is no leftover food, they still labour in the fields on an empty stomach.
Once, while dispensing TB medication to a mother, she told me, “Thank you for this medicine; I am taking it faithfully to stay healthy for my children. I don’t want them to lose a mother who loves them.” Her words struck me deeply and felt like evidence of profound, selfless love. Such love transcends personal needs and points outward towards others.
Life brings difficulties, injustices, challenges, and adversities, yet people persevere. I reflected on why, and the clearest answer I found is a simple four-letter word: LOVE. Scripture supports this perspective. In 2 Peter 1: 5 -7, we are encouraged: For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. Love is the culminating virtue that sustains endurance amid hardship.
Blessing for mothers, especially the migrant workers, during the Filipino Mass on Mother's Day. Photo: Fr Elbert Balbastro
As Christians, we are called to love according to Jesus’ command: to love God and to love one another. In cultivating our faith, virtues such as goodness, knowledge, and self-control are important, yet the foundation and highest expression of Christian life is love.
Love is the summit towards which all other virtues point and by which they are rightly ordered. Jesus’ death demonstrates this supreme love: though he did not deserve suffering, he accepted the cross out of love for humanity, offering himself for our salvation.
In parish ministry, I have observed many mothers who reflect Christ’s love through quiet sacrifice, patient care, and steadfast devotion. Emulating Jesus, as mothers often do, Christians are encouraged to prioritise love over selfishness and greed, making compassionate service and self-giving the hallmark of Christian discipleship.
Columban Fr Elbert Balbastro lives and works in Pakistan.
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