WE WISH A HAPPY Father’s Day to all fathers and father figures.
Many countries now observe Father’s Day, the celebration that originated on June 19, 1910, in the U.S. as the brainchild of Sonora Smart Dodd. Desiring to pay tribute to her father, a Civil War veteran who raised his six children after the death of their mother in childbirth, she chose his birth date. Eventually it became a national holiday in 1972, when President Richard Nixon officially designated the third Sunday of June as Father’s Day.
The vital role of fathers has existed since the origins of humanity, when God the Father created Adam in his own image and likeness, breathing into him the breath of life, and then formed Eve out of a rib from Adam’s side (Gen. 2:7; 2:22.). Adam became the father of Cain, Abel, Seth and other sons and daughters, and so the human family has continued. Our lineage ultimately traces back to “… the son of Enosh, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God (Luke 3:38).” The creation account in the Book of Genesis is not meant to be a historical or scientific text according to our modern sense, but rather a spiritual account of God’s relationship with humanity. God is our loving Father who created us, knows us by name, loves and cares for each of us and calls us to love and care for each other. In response to the apostles’ request that Jesus teach them how to pray, in the Lord’s Prayer He used the word “Abba,” meaning “Daddy” in Aramaic.
The importance of fathers cannot be overstated, extending far beyond the mere biological act of contributing to the conception of a new human being. Children need a warm and loving father who is consistent, patient and present. A father needs to be compassionate and yet should correct his children when necessary, to raise children with greater self-esteem and a more positive identity. The lack of such a father impacts children’s ability to develop healthy relationships and adversely impacts their emotional development.
St. Paul, realizing that each of our families has God the Father as our source of life, says: “For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that … Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; … that you, rooted and grounded in love, may … know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God (Eph 3:14-19).”
Let us give thanks for our fathers and father figures and pray for them.
FOR YOUR FAMILY
■ Do something special for your fathers and father figures, such as a visit, phone call or handmade card or gift.
■ Prepare a special prayer service for your father, including your favorite Scripture passage and a Litany of Thanksgiving, with each person adding qualities they are grateful for, and everyone responding together: “Thank you, God our Father” or “God our Father, please bless my Dad.”
■ Pray the opening lines of the Creed: “We believe in one God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth and of all things visible and invisible,” and share anything else you believe about God our Father.
■ Memorize and tell God how you feel about: “See what love the Father has bestowed on us that we may be called the children of God (1 John 3:1).”
■ Talk about the qualities of a good father and how you see these in your own father or father figure and in God our Father.