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Rejecting God as Father
No human language can capture all that God is, as seen in the enigmatic “I Am that I Am.” And yet, God has chosen the limitations of human language in which to communicate. Therefore, we must ask, “What is God communicating?” Those who object to God calling Himself “Father” state that doesn’t mean God is male. To that we must agree – God is spirit (John 4:24) and therefore does not have male body or XY chromosome. Still, what is God communicating by that “name” or “title”? Could God have chosen “Mother”? Could God have chosen “Parent”? Mary Baker Eddy coined “Mother-Father God”. Is she better with language than the Holy Spirit?Here’s a problem with rejecting the language God chose – it leads to other rejections. For example, rejecting even the parent model: “But the parent model for the divine has negative resonance as well. It suggests a kind of permanent parent-child relationship to God. God becomes a neurotic parent who does not want us to grow up…. Patriarchal theology uses the parent image for God to prolong spiritual infantilism as virtue and to make autonomy and assertion of free will a sin.” (Rosemary Radford Reuther, Sexism and God-Talk, p.69). Hmmm, reminds me of a certain serpent tempting Eve, doesn’t it?! “Be autonomous. Be assertive. God doesn’t want you to grow in your knowledge of good and evil because God Himself is evil!” Don’t reject human language when describing God. Understand God is purposing limiting himself by using human language. Understand also that God is communicating And yet understand what is God communicating? If nothing, then language is superfluous because it is inadequate. However, if each one of us is inadequate, and yet our God chooses to use us. Likewise, God purposefully chooses words, there must have been a reason. Don’t let our theologies, our bad experiences, project onto God to make Him less or something other than He says He is.
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