God as Parent

The God who is named Abba

There are many views of God and ideas about God, but what makes clear sense for each of us?

He or She or It?
Jesus consistently addressed the Almighty as Father, and told his followers to pray to Father. Yet, there is no gender or sex in this One; feel free to think he or she or it. We may say Mother or Parent or Holy One. I think the ritual words for the trinity should be verbs or words of action: the One who creates or parents, the One who liberates, the One who supports us. A Christian wrote, "God…is both mother and father to me and so much more. I have come to sense the joy of all creation and the unconditional love of my Creator."

Parent?
Jesus said to pray to Father, but some people were abused as children, or a parent was feared, or seemed distant. Many lived in single parent families or foster homes. Many had an absent father. Think about adults who cared for you, who were mentors — who gave positive and healthy support so you felt like leaning on them, depending on them, trusting them. Think of these as "father."

Jesus called God 'Abba'
The Apostle Paul and the Gospel of Mark — the two earliest witnesses — tell us that Jesus used the word "Abba" when he prayed. In Jesus’s native Aramaic you said "Abba" for father in-the-family, but when you talked about any one else’s father you used a more formal word. Jesus addressed God as Abba, and told us to think of God as Abba — the One with whom we want to relate in trust and love.

We can visualize family scenes that would have been familiar to the historical Jesus. His culture and religion were family centered. Their most critical act of worship, Passover, was a family meal with teaching, remembrance, and worship. Jesus learned his father’s trade in Joseph’s carpentry shop, and working with Joseph would have met many of the men of that village. Jesus as oldest son helped Joseph craft farming tools, including yokes. And at least once in Jesus’s youth, a revolt against Roman rule was put down several miles away, and the Romans conscripted carpenters to erect crosses to crucify hundreds of the rebels. So Jesus’s youth was a combination of long walks with his father on the way to carpentry jobs, working with him as an apprentice carpenter, and unforgettable horrors from the Roman occupiers. Jesus also was part of the family as oldest child in talk, meals, and all the activities of a family. From this environment and experience Jesus tells us to think of the Almighty as Abba – the in-the-family word for daddy.

Father has many different meanings today. Father is sometimes an easily tricked pushover. Father is sometimes strict or rigid. But Abba of first century Nazareth was none of these. He taught his elder son the craft of carpentry in which walls must be straight and roofs must drain rain. As eldest, he helped care for younger brothers and sisters. Passover and reading the Scriptures in synagogue school made an impact that Jesus showed in his teachings. Abba father required accuracy, care, compassion, and much more.

Once Jesus started teaching he used many images of his family; consider these:

"Is there anyone among you who, if your child asks for bread, will give a stone? Or if the child asks for a fish, will give a snake? … How much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him!"
"Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? And why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you – you of little faith? Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ For it is the (untrusting) who strive for all these things; and indeed your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things."

Re-read these two teachings. Use the word Abba every time the English translation has the word Father, thinking about Abba as the in-the-family intimate word — the parent who will give bread and will nourish.

Families and friends are meaningful as we trust one another. Deep friendship in which people have shared experiences and depended on one another are built on trust and develop growing trust. Couples whose relationship grows and flowers depends on trust and builds deeper trust. This interpersonal trust is the heart of our relationship with Abba. We learn to depend on Abba and to lean on Abba and this deep relationship grows and strengthens. The doctrines you believe are less important compared to trust that we can experience between friends and within couples.

Abba graces us with care and concern. Abba calms us during rush hour traffic. Abba deepens our trust in friends. Abba adds to the joy of music and art. Abba is with us through the triumphs and tragedies that life hurls at us.

Which is more miraculous?
Jesus did miracles of many different kinds. One is particularly pregnant with meaning – the feeding of the multitude. In each report Jesus has been teaching and tried to get away for some private re-charging of himself, but the crowds pressed after him. After many hours everyone is far from home and Jesus is reminded that people are hungry and have no where to go. Notice Jesus does not have some almighty awareness, but needs to be reminded. So, Jesus tells the crowds to sit in small groups on the green grass, he gathers the meager food the disciples have, blesses it, and starts sharing it. The Gospels skip to the end to say there was food left over. Two things could have happened, and we have no way of knowing which. We do know that people in this barren, arid land usually carried some bread or salted fish and water with them, in order to survive in this hostile environment. Jesus seated people in small groups, so they were looking at each other and started talking. I think when Jesus got his disciples to share the food hidden in their garments, people gradually began to reveal their most precious treasure of this moment, and share it with one another, and when they did, there was enough for everyone. What a significant meaning for us! So, choose one of two miracles: food miraculously multiplied or people sharing their hidden rations. Which is the greater miracle? And which is pregnant with meaning for us, when so many children lack food and medical care, while others have so much. What is the Abba-Parent moving us to do about this dis-equality? What about the dis-equality of nations using resources of God's creation?

One other fact about Jesus reveals Abba. When he gathered followers, the Gospels are clear that Jesus treated women followers just like men. Given the sexist and patriarchal views of his culture and religion, this may be the greatest miracle. We have work ahead of us to match his nonsexist care in today's church and world. Consider the song Mary Magdalene sings, "I don’t know how to love him" from Jesus Christ Superstar for deep insight. (Lyrics by Tim Rice, music by Andrew Lloyd Webber)

Jesus wanted his listeners to think. Many of his teachings are questions to make us think. His parables are tales that invite us to think. He wants us to think about what we do and why.

Vengeful?
Some people think God is vengeful. They think of God as keeping records of what we do in two columns — good and bad. God for them is judging. Jesus talked about judgment — for those who did not trust in God. While Jesus painfully died on the cross, he promised life eternal to one of the thieves crucified with him, because of a glimpse of trust and insight the thief showed. The New Testament says, leave judgment to God. Jesus warns that when we judge some fault of another person, we often have something far worse (Matt 7.1–5).

In the first few centuries churches changed their teaching from trust to believe — trust in Abba was replaced by the words and creeds you believe. Here is a useful timeline of the many changes during that tumultuous time. Elaine Pagels' book Beyond Belief can help you understand these profound changes and their implications.

Over the centuries God came to be understood in legalistic images and ideas. Perhaps that’s not surprising since many early churches were former courtrooms, known as basilicas. The head dominated the heart; leaders of the church were thinkers whose abstractions were sometimes hard to understand and difficult to relate to life.

Reformers tried to change that. Mystics such as Meister Eckhart around the 13th century showed God's presence. Martin Luther re-affirmed trust. John Wesley in the 1700s taught grace and trust, started support groups, began orphanages for homeless children, and worked to reduce physical and social ills. His brother Charles wrote many of our hymns. Here is part of one:

Unite the pair so long disjoin'd,
Knowledge and vital Piety:
Learning and Holiness combined,
And Truth and Love let people see,
In those whom up to thee we give,
Thine, wholly thine, to die and live.

This Abba reaches toward us, so we may experience trust and love. Jesus talked about Abba, and came among us so we might have life richly and abundantly. To find that we may need to find a special dance troupe.

The Abba that Jesus talked about may be largely forgotten, Jesus’s actions for the poor and outcasts may be overlooked, and Jesus’s actions that welcomed women slip from memory. Contrast this Abba of Jesus with other later views of God.

Is your God someone you would want to meet in a dark alley?