On April 15th, the Church celebrates the memorial of St. Hunna, patron saint of washerwomen. Born in Alsace, in what is modern-day France, Hunna was a noblewoman who dedicated her life to the service of the poor, and is most well-known for having done laundry for the peasants of the area surrounding her. Eventually, she would go on to do further acts of service, including helping with childcare and cooking, and she would even provide new clothing and teach others about good hygiene and would bathe those who could not bathe themselves. St. Hunna died in 679.

A quick perusal online will present the reader with a myriad of prayers for the task of doing laundry. The same cannot be said for all chores, so this points to the need that is felt by people to seek help to get through this task which can feel so endless and mundane. For additional saintly intercessors for the work of caring for a home, there are St. Francis de Sales and St. Frances of Rome. St. Francis de Sales is well-known for having helped the laity to see that holiness is found in the small tasks of daily life. St. Frances of Rome famously said, “A married woman must, when called upon, leave her devotions to God at the altar to find him in her household affairs.” How many of us wouldn’t love to have more time to sit in adoration or go to daily Masses, but our workload or season of life prohibit it? St. Martin de Porres is another saint who learned the value to be found in the mundane of our daily work. “Everything, even sweeping, scraping vegetables, weeding a garden, and waiting on the sick could be a prayer, if it were offered to God.” -St. Martin de Porres)

What we can learn from these saints is that even the chores and tasks we find most unenjoyable are a chance for us to encounter God. In service to one another, we can ask God to help us see these things from His perspective, and bring our burdens to Him. We can learn to see Christ in the members of our family when we tend to sick children and need to wash out dirty bedsheets. We can be reminded to see the innocence of our children and appreciate their growth, in size, spirit, and maturity. Nothing hits quite like washing the same shirt my oldest son wore for the youngest of the boys and realizing how much they’ve grown, and there’s a relief in seeing that they can take care of their own laundry as they get older, because I know they will be capable of taking care of themselves and others when they get older. I can take this moment of reflection to thank God for all these little things.

There are three tasks I have often found it difficult to complete around our house. One is the haircuts for all of my family. I started to cut my husband’s hair before our wedding so that we could save money on the frequent haircuts, and I have no idea how much money we’ve saved over the years, but seeing as I give haircuts to him and our 5 boys regularly, plus have given our daughter and myself haircuts as needed, it’s a considerable sum. Why do I dread this task? The little prickly hairs that stick in my clothing. But in it, I still find a blessing. I’ve been witness to the aging of my husband and the growth of my children. I’ve seen changing patterns of hair growth, variations in hair color and texture overtime, and seen heads and necks grow, and even facial hair come in. One could give haircuts and not feel that it’s intimate, but it is. It’s deeply personal.

The other two chores I have often dreaded over the years were laundry and dishes. Today, our children do the bulk of the dishes and laundry, and I fill the gaps where needed, and I have found that I don’t really dislike the chores themselves, but I used to struggle with the repetitive nature of it all. The work is never really done, especially when you homeschool a large family. The kids who typically do those chores often struggle with a spirit of whininess, but they are also reminded that once, mom used to do ALL the chores for everybody. It is a blessing to only have to focus on one of those chores rather than everything. Our home came with a dishwasher, but it was old when we moved in and eventually died. We debated getting a new one, but decided it was not worth the money, knowing how many issues family and friends have faced because of them.

For laundry, we’ve been through a multitude of trials, and I’ve lost count of the number of washers and dryers we’ve been through. We’ve done many, many repairs to machines, used a clothesline many summers, and I’ve even had to wash our laundry by hand in times of desperation when we were without a functioning machine. I’ve tried just about everything in regard to clothing for our children, limiting the number of items they could own, regulating rules about when to wash items (for example, church clothes do not need to be washed each week after being worn for an hour or two on a Sunday morning, or how frequently pants get washed), but then I also to struggle their inverse reaction at times… “Please, GO CHANGE YOUR CLOTHES.” It’s a delicate balance only the older kids have figured out. We’ve had the kids take care of their own laundry at times, and some of them still do, and most of the kids help in some way with the folding and putting away of the laundry. Yes, I’ve had it suggested that we simply don’t fold laundry, but then the kids lose track of what is clean and what is dirty, because they seem to throw their clothing all over their rooms, clean or dirty. Folded laundry in the dirty laundry basket is a sure sign somebody didn’t put things away properly and isn’t paying attention. Treating stains and repairing clothing are not high on the to-do list when there is so much clothing to deal with.

But facts are facts. Modern machines aren’t built to last like they used to be. We homeschool and homestead which means we’re apt to have more heavily soiled clothing than most (muddy pants are a constant part of our laundry, spring through autumn), and heavily soiled clothing is harder on machines, as is our very hard water (high iron content). When an unbalanced load of wash in the washer threatens to damage the machine and no number of times we rearrange the clothing seems to get the balance right for the final spin, we’ve often been left with little choice but to throw the clothing in the dryer far less dry than we’d like, which has led to broken belts, longer dry times, and fried parts. The computerized panels are sure to fail eventually. Living where we do, I have found the many challenges of line-drying clothing. In spring and fall, the neighbors spread manure in their field, and if we don’t want our clothing to pick up the odor, I can’t line dry for at least a day or two. The location of our property frequently causes us to have mist and fog, so clothing cannot be on the line until after it is cleared or needs to be removed before the fog rolls in. Rain is a threat you don’t always anticipate, and the wind has frequently ripped clothing from the lines. Amidst all of these various struggles, I have most certainly lost my patience.

How nice it would have been to realize I had a holy helper available to me in times of frustration, or that there are prayers out there written for this oft-laborious chore! I’ve long used these chores as time for prayer, and I’ve used it as time to listen to podcasts that have helped me to grow in the faith, but I would certainly have benefited for a prayer to put me in the right frame of mind when laundry falls behind and there are seven loads waiting to be washed, staring me down.

A little meditation for your time working on laundry is the care of the cloths and vestments used for Mass. I’ve served 2.5 years as a sacristan, and though my job has never been to launder the linens and vestments used at Mass, I have had to learn a bit about the process. Funny how little we might think about all of the work that goes into preparation for sacred Liturgy! When our boys started as altar servers, I had my first interaction with garments used for sacred purposes. I was asked to alter an alb for one of the boys. A number of years later, I learned that a volunteer in our parish washes all of the albs a few times a year. If I remember correctly, not only has our parish’s Women’s group purchased vestments as needed, they have taken care of the dry cleaning costs. Then as I began working as the sacristan, I found out that there is a parishioner that was washing all of the altar linens, and that she had the duty of removing any stains from the Precious Blood, and also any wax that would get on the cloth from the candles. These are washed at least two times a year, and include the altar cloth, the cloth that goes in front of our tabernacle, and the cloth on our credence table. Yet another volunteer is responsible for the cleaning and pressing of the linens use for the Liturgy of the Eucharist- the corporal, purificator(s), hand towels, and the fabric covers that go onto our pall. As the sacristan, it has been my job to reset the chalice after each Mass, and to put the used linens in a special bag, and I also keep an eye on the altar cloths to see if anything needs washing, and if I happen to notice any dirty vestments, that too, I would need to bring to the attention of the volunteers who care for these articles.

The washing of any of the linens needs to be carefully done. The sacrarium (a sink that drains directly into the ground) is used when rinsing any stains that may contain the Precious Blood. The purificator and corporal are carefully shaken out over the sacrarium and the sacrarium rinsed, so that any particles of the Precious Body are not discarded recklessly. (Even the sacred vessels require special care in washing them after they’ve been cleaned by the priest or deacon at the end of the Mass, and any spilled Blood or dropped Hosts require the careful cleaning of the ground where it was dropped.) The purificator and corporal are washed, must stay white, and are carefully pressed and starched. The starch helps to close any holes in the fabric that particles could fall through, and helps to keep the fabric folded in a way that if something should happen, crumbs are caught within the folds. They are even folded in a particular manner. I twice had to wash the altar linens for our parish, and I cannot describe the stress that it induced in me, since we have incredibly hard water that has a habit of staining white fabrics yellow. If this is your responsibility at your parish, God bless you! And if it is not, perhaps say a prayer of thanks that we can be a little less precise in our daily work is in order!

Prayers

St. Hunna Prayer from The Liturgical Homestead

St. Hunna, you are a reminder of the importance of clothing the naked. In our homes, there are always bodies to be clothed, and in taking on our duties of laundering for our families, we should see the act of clothing Christ. Pray for us, that we may see our family members with the love of God and learn to serve like you and like Christ. Amen.

A Mother’s Prayer for Laundry from the Ursuline Sisters

I find you so close to me right here, dear Lord. Surrounded by the dirt and scattered clothing of my family, I find this an ideal spot to pray with you. No one comes near here so it is quiet, and it gives me a chance to reflect on the many blessings of my life. As I pick up their clothing and sort it, I ask you to give each of them what is needed most in their lives. I fill the washer with my husband’s shirts and socks, and ask that you bless him as he wears them to work each day. Give him the grace to see that his work is holy and open his eyes to see the sacredness of each moment of life. As I sort the tiny socks or the overalls of the children, I smile and remember how blessed I am to have them in my life. I sort the larger teenage clothing and wonder at how fast these clothes have become larger sizes – and how quickly children grow up. I ask your help as I guide them through each new phase of their lives. Give me a love that is endless, a heart that forgives them and the humility to ask for their forgiveness when that is right. Help me keep them from danger, and help me to let go and trust you when it is time to do that. I try so hard to be perfect but lead me to remember that it is here in the smudged, disorganized and disheveled part of life that I find you the nearest. Thank you, dearest Lord, for so much grace in my life!

A Prayer for Doing Laundry from ReclaimToday

Jesus, my redeemer, be with me as I address this daunting pile of dirty clothes. As I fight stubborn stains, I remember how you took my sin-stained heart and wiped it clean. God who makes all things new, these warm and freshly scented clothes straight from the dryer remind me of how your Spirit’s presence is my greatest comfort. God who brings order out of chaos, now that my clothes are laundered, help me find motivation to fold them before they grow wrinkled and stale. Amen.

For Spiritual Laundry– From Franciscan Media

Lord, there are many part of me that need to be washed.
Cleanse my worries, cleanse my thoughts.
Cleanse my habits, cleanse my intentions.
Cleanse my sins, cleanse my judgments.
Cleanse my mindset, cleanse my actions.
Create in me a new, squeaky-clean heart, oh God.
Amen.

A Prayer for Housework- From Tired Catholic Parents

St. Martin de Porres, help me find joy in my housework.
Amen.

For more ways to pray through the work of your laundry, visit The Peaceful Haven.

To my children, for all of their help with the laundry, and to all the faithful women (and men) who diligently wash the linens and vestments for your parishes, thank you for the work you do!

In Christ,
Danielle