More Than an Idea

“I cannot think of anything more important for us than to work at establishing the conviction that God is Father.” What does it mean for me to call God my Father? Often I imagine some of us may cringe at the idea of “overemphasizing” the fatherhood of God. Whether we gawk at this statement because of our wounded relationships within our families, our religious convictions, or our political persuasions, Christians must work to boldly proclaim this scriptural reality: that to Jesus, and unto us, God is Father. As Creator, God is Father. The Father begets. God “fathers” creation. It is from God that all earthly men become fathers. Often we are afraid or resistant to call God by this beautiful, bold name because we see Him in light of our warped relationships with famished and fallen fathers. God is the first and the last, the beginning and the end—the first and the final Father for us all. To cry out to Him in faith, in abandonment and trust, is to be a true child. And this Advent

“Advent is the season of the seed… Advent is the season of the secret…” ( The Reed of God, Caryll Houselander 27-28). Advent is a time of preparation for the birth of Jesus Christ. Jesus “arrives,” “comes,” ( advenire) unto us in the flesh, born of the Virgin Mary of Nazareth. The Church’s season of Advent awaits this birth. We celebrate this coming, this sowing of the word, of the seed of God. This is the seed that has been sown in secret before the dawn of our creation. That God would come to us as “Emmanuel” –as one who is “with us”—in Christ, in the flesh, as man, truly a “God who is with us” (Matthew 1:22-23). This Advent season I have been struck by the constant reminder of what this season is… that it is a time where seeds are sown. This is a time where secrets are made manifest. This is a time of waiting, a time of longing, a time of not only trimming a tree but moreover trimming the grist and grime that surrounds my interior life—my heart, the core and seat o