God The Father

[carrdero]

In the instances of touring many different religious forums, I have always come across someone who utilizes the analogy of God as a Father figure or recites parables of how this Almighty BEing cares about us in a way that is paternal even if it is dictated as a masculine figure.

Where did the idea of God the Father originate? Who was it to first declare that God was not only a father figure but everyone’s Father?

What if you had a father that was abusive or uncaring, distant or even absent? Are these the same qualities that we would want to associate with a Supreme Being?

Who is the model father that we are measuring GOD to? Who is the perfect ideal father? Is it our own parent? Is it the ideal of someone else’s parent that we know and have doted from afar?

Is the concept of a perfect father unconventional or a notion that has not yet been perceived?

Is it fair to think of this entity as parent figure or a caretaker for humankind?

What in your opinion is a concept of a perfect father and has God met those expectations?

[Semalsia]

A good father would do everything in his power to save his child from harm and pain. He would always try to be there when you needed him.

God, it would seem, wants us to suffer. And he's never around.

[Sojourner]

[quote name='carrdero' post='1278409' date='May 21 2007, 07:37 AM']In the instances of touring many different religious forums, I have always come across someone who utilizes the analogy of God as a Father figure or recites parables of how this Almighty BEing cares about us in a way that is paternal even if it is dictated as a masculine figure.

Where did the idea of God the Father originate? Who was it to first declare that God was not only a father figure but everyone’s Father?

What if you had a father that was abusive or uncaring, distant or even absent? Are these the same qualities that we would want to associate with a Supreme Being?

Who is the model father that we are measuring GOD to? Who is the perfect ideal father? Is it our own parent? Is it the ideal of someone else’s parent that we know and have doted from afar?

Is the concept of a perfect father unconventional or a notion that has not yet been perceived?

Is it fair to think of this entity as parent figure or a caretaker for humankind?

What in your opinion is a concept of a perfect father and has God met those expectations?[/quote]
The idea of God as a Father originates from God's role as the source of all life.

It is one of many analogies used in Scripture to illustrate God's relationship with his people.

Where we run into trouble is making the analogy go the wrong way: e.g., human fathers can be abusive, uncaring, distant, and since God describes himself as a father he must be like that. We are made in God's image, and painting him in our image is a mistake. The analogy is meant to go the other way around ... that human fathers are like God in certain ways, and in fact were created to mirror God's fatherly characteristics. But, rather than being clear reflections, sin results in distortion, so we are no longer accurate reflections of God's fatherliness. So it's not that we're measuring God to a model father, i.e., coming up with our ideal of a father and then saying, "God is like this," but rather that God through his example shows us what it means to be a good father.

RE: God wanting us to suffer ... books have been written on this, so I'm not going to be able to fully explore it in two paragraphs. But pain, while not fun, is a necessary part of life. It is a warning to us that something is wrong, and a means to channel us toward the one who can heal. So, when I have pain in my physical body, it's a sign that something is not functioning properly, and that I may need medical assistance. C.S. Lewis says pain is God's megaphone -- they way he gets our attention to let us know that something is wrong with our condition or with the way we are traveling. We learn from pain, we grow from pain, and it shapes who we are. Without pain, we would not have the necessary warnings to get the help we need when things are not right. A good father would not leave his children without such a warning system.

[Jaime]

[quote name='Semalsia' post='1278433' date='May 21 2007, 07:35 AM']A good father would do everything in his power to save his child from harm and pain. He would always try to be there when you needed him.

God, it would seem, wants us to suffer. And he's never around.[/quote]

It wasn't God that chose suffering for us. We made that choice for ourselves

[GodChaser]

[quote name='Semalsia' post='1278433' date='May 21 2007, 08:35 AM']A good father would do everything in his power to save his child from harm and pain. He would always try to be there when you needed him.

God, it would seem, wants us to suffer. And he's never around.[/quote]
Hate to be theologically against a fellow Christian, but that is not the kind of Father I want to be, nor do I believe our God is.

Even today, as I read Isaiah, God uses tribulations and sorrow to teach us. That shows he is not afraid to let us come to harm and pain, and in fact, he uses pain and harm in our lives to teach us to draw closer to him. That has always been my experience with the Lord, and I expect it to be that way until the Kingdom comes!

[quote name='"Isaiah 30:19-21' date=' KJV"']For the people shall dwell in Zion at Jerusalem: thou shalt weep no more: he will be very gracious unto thee at the voice of thy cry; when he shall hear it, he will answer thee.

[b]And though the Lord give you the bread of adversity, and the water of affliction, yet shall not thy teachers be removed into a corner any more, but thine eyes shall see thy teachers:[/b]

And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left.[/quote]

Then God wipes the tears from us.

A father who shelters his children (doing all in his power to save his child from harm and pain) will create a co-dependant child. God wants to be our god, leading and guiding us through his word, but he doesn't want us to rely on him on everything. He is a co-operator in our lives. We work with him, he works with us, and we lived a blessed a joyful life!

That's my Father!

[Mateo el Feo]

[quote name='carrdero' post='1278409' date='May 21 2007, 09:37 AM']In the instances of touring many different religious forums, I have always come across someone who utilizes the analogy of God as a Father figure or recites parables of how this Almighty BEing cares about us in a way that is paternal even if it is dictated as a masculine figure.

Where did the idea of God the Father originate? Who was it to first declare that God was not only a father figure but everyone’s Father?[/quote]The "idea" of God the Father originates with Jesus Christ, who taught us to call God "Our Father..."

Some text from the Catechism:

[url="http://www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt1sect2chpt1art1p2.htm"]http://www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt1sect2chpt1art1p2.htm[/url]

[AccountDeleted]

The "Father" creates the child. I am God's creation, therefore He is my Father.

As for the suffering, God gave us Free Will, which we have often used to our own detriment. I have always found Him to be there when I tried to pick myself up from my own errors, like a loving Father. He listens to my pain and wipes my tears, and then lets me try again.

The Father is firm and strong, loving and kind, just and merciful. God is the perfect Father, and all men would do well to try to live in His image.

[doe-jo]

[quote name='carrdero' post='1278409' date='May 21 2007, 06:37 AM']Where did the idea of God the Father originate? Who was it to first declare that God was not only a father figure but everyone’s Father?[/quote]

Jesus himself taught us that God is our father.. hint "our father".. the prayer that Jesus taught us, the Lord's prayer, starts with the phrase "our father".. not "Jesus's father".. but "'OUR' father"..