Motherhood is a particular form of feminine kenosis. The mother gives herself to her child, partially dying for him, following God's self-lowering love, repeating in a certain sense the words of Saint John the Baptist: "He must increase and I must decrease" (Jn 3:30).
The mother's sacrifice includes the sword spoken of by Simeon. In this sacrifice, every mother leans over the crucified Jesus. The cult of the Virgin Mother expresses every woman's vocation, her charism of protection and help.
Excerpt from "Sacrament de l'amour": Le mystère conjugal à la lumière de la tradition orthodoxe, P. Evdokimov. DDB, 1980