Dear People                       Whom God Loves,

Dear People Whom God Loves,

MOTHER GOD

When we use names for God, if they are good names, they tell us something about what God is like. At the same time, God is not like what they say, and God is much more than what they say. Names of God are merely pointers - though valuable - to the mystery we call God.

Since names give us an inkling about what God is like, if we use many names, we will have a better - but very limited - notion of what God is like.

When we name God "mother", some of us, understandably, are surprised and think that this is wrong. This is understandable because we have become used to - at some level - thinking of God as masculine. For example, we speak of the "man upstairs."

It is true that a good father will have both masculine and feminine traits...just as a good mother has feminine and masculine traits. If we sufficiently realized this, we could call God mother or fatherexclusively. I don't think, however, that this is the case.

If we exclusively call God father, we will tend, consciously or unconsciously, to think of God as male. Just as if we exclusively call God mother, we will tend, consciously or unconsciously, to think of God as female. If we do either, we lean toward making an idol, God is spirit. Hence, to think of God as male or female is to make an idol.

In my opinion, it is important - and even essential - to name God both mother and father.

Jesus called God AL'ba which means "father" or perhaps "daddy." The word Abbe on Jesus' lips seems to include the so called feminine traits like tenderness and merciful Understanding. Jesus' whole life showed him to be inclusive of women and men. Using Jesus to sanction exclusiveness seems to be a gross distortion.

If we want to name God, exclusively, as either mother or father, it might be growthful to ask ourselves why.

Smile, God Loves You

Father Clay

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