Weekly Reflection – The Mothering God

Every now and then a strident headline appears along the lines of ‘Stop using ‘Father’ to talk about God, archbishop urges.’  We’re meant to snort into our cornflakes or cappuccinos at the latest desperate example of the church abandoning the Bible and overthrowing centuries of tradition in a doomed attempt to be trendy and relevant.

Now, archbishops do not generally want to abandon the Bible or overthrow centuries of tradition.  Sensible ones realise that late middle-aged women and men will never be trendy and relevance comes from simply being themselves and trying to do the day job well.  Rather, they are recognising that everyone’s experience is different, and this can affect our understanding of God.  Someone who never knew their father, say, or has never been a parent themselves, or had a difficult relationship with their father, might not feel the word or image of ‘Father’ is the most helpful way to think about God.

More, if we actually (do headline-writers ever do this, I wonder?) read our Bibles and other traditional texts, they often speak about God using feminine words and images.  For instance, in Proverbs, God speaks about God’s wisdom – the agent through whom God creates and who guides God’s people – using she; Christians later came to think of this as a reference to the Holy Spirit.  In St Luke’s gospel, the Lord speaks about wanting to gather up the people of Jerusalem as a mother hen gathers her little ones under her wings.  St Anselm, the medieval monk and archbishop of Canterbury, prayed, Jesus, as a mother you gather your people to you: you are gentle with us as a mother with her children.  There are many other examples.

The language of the mothering God can of course be complex too.  Men can be caring, and women can be uncaring, just as much as the other way round.  And this Mothering Sunday, I’m particularly conscious of those who find the language and culture of this day difficult – perhaps because they never knew their mother, or their relationship was difficult, or they wished to be a parent themselves but aren’t.

If we are celebrating this day with a mother, we can give thanks to God for them.  All of us can give thanks for all who care for us, whatever their relationship or role in our life.

And whatever you feel about the day, do pause and reflect on how you think about, speak about, speak to God.  There’s much more to God than we usually think, and reflecting on different ways we speak of God can be a really good way of thinking about our faith more deeply.

With prayers and best wishes,
Philip