--- title: Bearing Witness description: Brianna Heldt considers how the most important work mothers can do is to lead by her everyday faithful example. image: https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/20250604%20BHeldt%201.png --- [![catholic-mom-logo-v2](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/images/catholic-mom-logo-v2.svg "catholic-mom-logo-v2")](https://www.catholicmom.com/) [![facebook](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-facebook.svg)](http://www.facebook.com/CatholicMomCommunity) [![twitter](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-twitter.svg)](http://twitter.com/CatholicMomCom) [![instagram](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-instagram.svg)](http://instagram.com/catholicmomcommunity) [![youtube](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-youtube.svg)](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCAuUqHCVPDzyMgSMaMZxxug?view_as=subscriber) [![search-icon](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/search-icon.svg)](https://www.catholicmom.com/articles/bearing-witness#) [PARENTING](https://www.catholicmom.com/articles/tag/parenting) # Bearing Witness Jun 4, 2025 1:00:00 PM  |  by [Brianna Heldt](https://www.catholicmom.com/articles/author/brianna-heldt) ![featured image](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/20250604%20BHeldt%201.png) *Brianna Heldt considers how the most important work mothers can do is to lead by her everyday faithful example.* --- Edith Stein, the Jewish philosopher who converted to Catholicism and became Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, once wrote: > To cherish, guard, protect, nourish and advance growth is [woman’s] natural, maternal yearning. ([Essays on Women](https://www.amazon.com/Essays-Woman-Collected-English-German/dp/0935216596))  These are lovely words, particularly for modern mothers raising children and building homes worthy of a feminine genius’ calling. Mothers long to do meaningful, productive work as they shape and form the souls in their care. Edith Stein had it right.   ## Advancing Growth by Bearing Witness In fact, the more I contemplate motherhood in general (my oldest child is 21 years old), the more certain I am that so much of how we “advance growth” is to simply *bear witness* to the lives of our children. Mothers may labor and toil under the illusion that we are in control of them from the day they’re born, but reality and my own lived experience would suggest otherwise: I’ve had three miscarriages, I have two children presently battling a multitude of chronic and baffling health issues, and my 6-year-old refuses to pick up after himself. Every single one of my kids — twelve in total, four of them adopted — has a different temperament, set of strengths, and profile of needs, with that last one changing by the day (or, more often, the moment.)      Many years ago, as a brand-new mom, I thought I was somehow completely “in charge” of all things related to my children. But now, I feel as if I’m essentially along for the ride. I wish I had a dollar (or even just a dime) for every time I have stood in a kid’s room and said, “I wish I could fix this, but I know that I can’t.” I wish I’d not had to drop off my college freshman this past fall with a freshly-torn ACL, which necessitated surgery all the way across the country from me. I wish I could heal all the illnesses, prevent all the disappointments, and yes, turn my young son into a kid who naturally likes to clean up his toys. But I can’t. Sometimes all I can do is simply *be there.*       ![null](https://www.catholicmom.com/hs-fs/hubfs/20250604%20BHeldt%203.png?width=1080&height=1350&name=20250604%20BHeldt%203.png) I often think of Jesus’ mother Mary, at the foot of the cross, watching in horror as her beloved adult child was put to death. In Christ’s final moments, unable to relieve his physical, psychological, and spiritual anguish, Mary stood helplessly by, bearing witness to not only the power of Jesus and His redemption of the broken world but also to the mystery and power of motherhood. It is a modern myth that to be a mother is to orchestrate a particular outcome for our children. Instead we, like Mary, are asked by God to watch and pray and be present, especially when things are painful, difficult, and confusing.       ## Finding Beauty in Painful Times   But there is beauty in these dark spaces, too. As women and mothers, we tend to quite naturally orient ourselves toward the virtue of *hope.* We possess the potential for cultivating and then bringing into reality a beautiful vision for home and hearth, for family life, for joy and humor and levity on the one hand, and empathy and nurture on the other. We, like Mary, bear witness to the sufferings and fears at the foot of the cross but *also* to the joy and hope of the Resurrection.      Regardless of what we mothers face, we can move forward clinging to Christ, to His Church, and to His mother Mary. Only when we surrender our hopes and dreams for our children to God, consciously placing their lives in His loving and merciful hands, can we embrace motherhood in its totality. It is through properly understanding and contextualizing my identity as a mother — not shouldering a greater burden than I am called to and instead focusing on the very simple yet profound calling of my vocation, which is nothing more and nothing less than a call to* love — *that I can live each day empowered, content, and dare I say, happy. This does not mean there won’t be moments of anguish at the foot of the cross, but if I keep my eyes on Christ, His love for me, and His love for my children, I can accept with open hands His mysterious unfolding plans for them, and for my family.    ![null](https://www.catholicmom.com/hs-fs/hubfs/20250604%20BHeldt%202.png?width=1080&height=1350&name=20250604%20BHeldt%202.png)    So I will continue to bear witness. And I can see each new season as a beautiful beginning of sorts: not necessarily free from suffering or loss, but certainly a tangible sign that a good and loving God is faithful to His promise to “make all things new” for me and my children.       Share your thoughts with the Catholic Mom community! You'll find the comment box below the author's bio and list of recommended articles. --- Copyright 2025 Brianna Heldt Images: (top, bottom) Canva; (center) iStock, licensed for use by Holy Cross Family Ministries ### Share this article [![Share on Facebook](https://static.hubspot.com/final/img/common/icons/social/facebook-24x24.png)](http://www.facebook.com/share.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.catholicmom.com%2Farticles%2Fbearing-witness%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dfacebook) [![Share on Twitter](https://static.hubspot.com/final/img/common/icons/social/twitter-24x24.png)](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?original_referer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.catholicmom.com%2Farticles%2Fbearing-witness%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dtwitter&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.catholicmom.com%2Farticles%2Fbearing-witness%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dtwitter&source=tweetbutton&text=Bearing%20Witness) [![Share on Email](https://static.hubspot.com/final/img/common/icons/social/email-24x24.png)](mailto:?subject=Check%20out%20https%3A%2F%2Fwww.catholicmom.com%2Farticles%2Fbearing-witness%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Demail%20&body=Check%20out%20https%3A%2F%2Fwww.catholicmom.com%2Farticles%2Fbearing-witness%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Demail) ** #### About the Author ![Brianna Heldt](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/Brianna%20Heldt%202024.jpg) ### [Brianna Heldt](https://www.catholicmom.com/articles/author/brianna-heldt) Brianna Heldt is a writer and speaker whose essays have appeared in National Catholic Register, Denver Catholic Register, Word on Fire, Townhall, Crisis Magazine, The Federalist, The Daily Caller, and on her Substack [Just Showing Up](https://briannaheldt.substack.com/). Brianna’s favorite author is Flannery O’Connor, and she makes her home in Denver, Colorado with her husband, many children, and flock of chickens. ## Related Blog Articles [ Rescued II: True Stories for Catholic Kids by Kathryn Griffin Swegart Read ](https://www.catholicmom.com/articles/rescued-ii-true-stories-for-catholic-kids-by-kathryn-griffin-swegart) [ Three Compelling Reasons to Make More Time for Adoration This Year Read ](https://www.catholicmom.com/articles/three-compelling-reasons-to-make-more-time-for-adoration-this-year) [ Mary Unties Knots Read ](https://www.catholicmom.com/articles/mary-unties-knots) ## Comments ## Donate now [![Support Catholic Mom](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/275132/10016573-1c5c-4aa5-baba-c2ac91fe7545.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/275132/10016573-1c5c-4aa5-baba-c2ac91fe7545) [![CatholicMom_hcfm_logo1_pos_871c_2728c (002)](https://www.catholicmom.com/hs-fs/hubfs/CatholicMom_hcfm_logo1_pos_871c_2728c%20(002).png?width=1806&height=731&name=CatholicMom_hcfm_logo1_pos_871c_2728c%20(002).png "CatholicMom_hcfm_logo1_pos_871c_2728c (002)")](https://www.catholicmom.com/) ##### Subscribe to Catholic Momcast on iTunes or Spotify [![itunes-logo-black](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/logos/itunes-logo-black.svg)](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/catholic-momcast/id1362352357)[![spotify-logo-black](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/logos/spotify-logo-black.svg)](https://open.spotify.com/show/15CoipHL7z61IDcYErV0b8?si=hqaQJSxDQgq7S1hxCwsoxQ) ##### CatholicMom on Social Networks [![facebook](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-facebook.svg)](http://www.facebook.com/CatholicMomCommunity) [![twitter](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-twitter.svg)](http://twitter.com/CatholicMomCom) [![instagram](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-instagram.svg)](http://instagram.com/catholicmomcommunity) [![youtube](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-youtube.svg)](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCAuUqHCVPDzyMgSMaMZxxug?view_as=subscriber) ##### About Catholic Mom [Who We Are](https://www.catholicmom.com/about-us) [Contact Us](https://www.catholicmom.com/contact) [Support CatholicMom.com](https://www.catholicmom.com/support-us)   ##### Associated Links [Holy Cross Family Ministries](https://www.hcfm.org/) [Family Rosary](https://www.familyrosary.org/) [Family Theater Productions](https://www.familytheater.org/) [Congregation of the Holy Cross](https://www.holycrossusa.org/) [Father Patrick Peyton, C.S.C.](https://www.fatherpeyton.org/) [The Peyton Institute for Domestic Church Life](https://www.peytonfamilyinstitute.org/) ### **Stay connected!** Don’t miss a thing! 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