"As God is our Father, so the Church is our mother." - Cyprian
"For there is no other way to enter into life unless this mother conceive us in her womb, give us birth, nourish us at her breast, and lastly, unless she keep us under her care and guidance until, putting off mortal flesh, we become like the angels." - John Calvin
Good quote! Ummmmm, did Calvin expand upon his view of mothers by any chance elsewhere? (For that matter, just what was his mother like anyway? She couldn't have been typical.)