God the Father is a title given to God in Christianity. In mainstream trinitarian

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

, God the Father is regarded as the first

Person A person (: people or persons, depending on context) is a being who has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations suc ...

of the Trinity, followed by the second person,

Jesus Christ Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

the Son, and the third person, God the Holy Spirit. Since the second century, Christian

creed A creed, also known as a confession of faith, a symbol, or a statement of faith, is a statement of the shared beliefs of a community (often a religious community) which summarizes its core tenets. Many Christian denominations use three creeds ...

s included affirmation of belief in "God the Father ( Almighty)", primarily in his capacity as "Father and creator of the universe". Christians take the concept of God as the father of Jesus Christ metaphysically further than the concept of God as the creator and father of all people, as indicated in the Apostles' Creed where the expression of belief in the "Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth" is immediately, but separately followed by in "Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord", thus expressing both senses of fatherhood.

Christianity

Overview

In much of modern Christianity, God is addressed as the Father, in part because of his active interest in human affairs on the earth, in the way that a father would take an interest in his children who are dependent on him and as a father, he will respond to humanity, his children, acting in their best interests.John W. Miller, ''Calling God "Father"'' (November 1999) pages x–xiiKarl Barth, ''Church Dogmatics, Vol. 2.1, Section 31: The Doctrine of God'' (23 September 2010) pp. 15–17 Many believe they can communicate with God and come closer to him through

prayer File:Prayers-collage.png, 300px, alt=Collage of various religionists praying – Clickable Image, Collage of various religionists praying ''(Clickable image – use cursor to identify.)'' rect 0 0 1000 1000 Shinto festivalgoer praying in front ...

– a key element of achieving communion with God. In general, the title ''Father'' (capitalized) signifies God's role as the life-giver, the

authority Authority is commonly understood as the legitimate power of a person or group of other people. In a civil state, ''authority'' may be practiced by legislative, executive, and judicial branches of government,''The New Fontana Dictionary of M ...

, and powerful protector, often viewed as immense, omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent with infinite power and charity that goes beyond human understanding. For instance, after completing his monumental work '' Summa Theologica'', Catholic St.

Thomas Aquinas Thomas Aquinas ( ; ; – 7 March 1274) was an Italian Dominican Order, Dominican friar and Catholic priest, priest, the foremost Scholasticism, Scholastic thinker, as well as one of the most influential philosophers and theologians in the W ...

concluded that he had not yet begun to understand "God the Father". Although the term "Father" implies masculine characteristics, God is usually defined as having the form of a spirit without any human biological gender, e.g. the

Catechism of the Catholic Church The ''Catechism of the Catholic Church'' (; commonly called the ''Catechism'' or the ''CCC'') is a reference work that summarizes the Catholic Church's doctrine. It was Promulgation (Catholic canon law), promulgated by Pope John Paul II in 1992 ...

No. 239 specifically states that "''God is neither man nor woman: he is God''". Although God is never directly addressed as "Mother", at times motherly attributes may be interpreted in

Old Testament The Old Testament (OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible, or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew and occasionally Aramaic writings by the Isr ...

references such as a hymn of praise , or . In the

New Testament The New Testament (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus, as well as events relating to Christianity in the 1st century, first-century Christianit ...

, the Christian concept of God the Father may be seen as a continuation of the Jewish concept, but with specific additions and changes, which over time made the Christian concept become even more distinct by the start of the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

.Wendy North and Loren T. Stuckenbruck, ''Early Jewish and Christian Monotheism'' (27 May 2004) pp. 111–112Larry W. Hurtado, ''One God, One Lord: Early Christian Devotion and Ancient Jewish Monotheism'' (25 October 2003) pp. 96–100 The conformity to the Old Testament concepts is shown in Matthew 4:10 and Luke 4:8 where in response to temptation Jesus quotes Deuteronomy 6:13 and states: "It is written, you shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve." 1 Corinthians 8:6 shows the distinct Christian teaching about the ''agency of Christ'' by first stating: "there is one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we unto him" and immediately continuing with "and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things, and we through him." This passage clearly acknowledges the Jewish teachings on the uniqueness of God, yet also states the role of Jesus as an agent in creation. Over time, the Christian doctrine began to fully diverge from Judaism through the teachings of the

Church Fathers The Church Fathers, Early Church Fathers, Christian Fathers, or Fathers of the Church were ancient and influential Christian theologians and writers who established the intellectual and doctrinal foundations of Christianity. The historical peri ...

in the second century and by the fourth century belief in the Trinity was formalized.Thomas D. McGonigle and James F. Quigley, ''A History of the Christian Tradition, Vol. I'' (September 1988) pp. 72–75, 90 According to Mary Rose D'Angelo and James Barr, the Aramaic term ''

Abba ABBA ( ) were a Swedish pop group formed in Stockholm in 1972 by Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. They are one of the most popular and successful musical groups of all time, and are one of the List ...

'' was in the early times of the New Testament neither markedly a term of endearment,James Barr, "Abba isn't 'daddy'", ''Journal of Theological Studies'', 39:28–47.Mary Rose D'Angelo, "Abba and 'Father': Imperial Theology and the Jesus Traditions", ''Journal of Biblical Literature'', Vol. 111, No. 4 (Winter, 1992), pp. 615–616 nor a formal word; but the word normally used by sons and daughters, throughout their lives, in the family context.

Old Testament

Schnorr von Carolsfeld Bibel in Bildern 1860 001

According to Marianne Thompson, in the

, God is called "Father" with a unique sense of familiarity. In addition to the sense in which God is "Father" to all men because he created the world (and in that sense "fathered" the world), the same God is also uniquely the law-giver to his

chosen people Throughout history, various groups of people have considered themselves to be the chosen people of a deity, for a particular purpose. The phenomenon of "chosen people" is well known among the Israelites and Jews, where the term () refers to the ...

. He maintains a special, covenantal father–child relationship with the people, giving them the

Shabbat Shabbat (, , or ; , , ) or the Sabbath (), also called Shabbos (, ) by Ashkenazi Hebrew, Ashkenazim, is Judaism's day of rest on the seventh day of the seven-day week, week—i.e., Friday prayer, Friday–Saturday. On this day, religious Jews ...

, stewardship of his prophecies, and a unique heritage in the things of God, calling Israel 'my son' because he delivered the descendants of Jacob out of slavery in Egypt according to his covenants and oaths to their fathers,

Abraham Abraham (originally Abram) is the common Hebrews, Hebrew Patriarchs (Bible), patriarch of the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. In Judaism, he is the founding father who began the Covenant (biblical), covenanta ...

Isaac Isaac ( ; ; ; ; ; ) is one of the three patriarchs (Bible), patriarchs of the Israelites and an important figure in the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, Islam, and the Baháʼí Faith. Isaac first appears in the Torah, in wh ...

and

Jacob Jacob, later known as Israel, is a Hebrew patriarch of the Abrahamic religions. He first appears in the Torah, where he is described in the Book of Genesis as a son of Isaac and Rebecca. Accordingly, alongside his older fraternal twin brother E ...

. In the

Hebrew Bible The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
. '' HWH are our father; our redeemer of old is your name." To God, according to Judaism, is attributed the fatherly role of protector. He is titled the Father of the poor, of the orphan and the widow, their guarantor of justice. He is also titled the Father of the king, as the teacher and helper over the judge of Israel. According to Alon Goshen-Gottstein, in the Old Testament "Father" is generally a

metaphor A metaphor is a figure of speech that, for rhetorical effect, directly refers to one thing by mentioning another. It may provide, or obscure, clarity or identify hidden similarities between two different ideas. Metaphors are usually meant to cr ...

; it is not a proper name for God but rather one of many titles by which Jews speak of and to God. According to Mark Sameth, references to God the Father convulsing in labor, giving birth, and suckling (Deuteronomy 32:13, 18) hint to a priestly belief, noted in the sixteenth and nineteenth centuries by Guillaume Postel and Michelangelo Lanci respectively, that “God the Father” is a dual-gendered deity. In Christianity fatherhood is taken in a more literal and substantive sense, and is explicit about the need for the Son as a means of accessing the Father, making for a more

metaphysical Metaphysics is the branch of philosophy that examines the basic structure of reality. It is traditionally seen as the study of mind-independent features of the world, but some theorists view it as an inquiry into the conceptual framework of h ...

rather than metaphorical interpretation.

New Testament

There is a deep sense in which Christians believe that they are made participants in the eternal relationship of Father and Son, through Jesus Christ. Christians call themselves ''adopted'' children of God:Ian W. Scott, ''Paul's Way of Knowing'' (1 December 2008) pp. 159–160John F. O'Grady, ''Pillars of Paul's Gospel: Galatians and Romans'' (May 1992) p. 162 In Christianity the concept of God as the Father of Jesus is distinct from the concept of God as the creator and Father of all people, as indicated in the Apostles' Creed.Robert C. Neville, ''Symbols of Jesus: a Christology of symbolic engagement'', 2002 p. 26 The profession in the creed begins with expressing belief in the "Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth" and then immediately, but separately, in "Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord", thus expressing both senses of fatherhood within the creed.

History

Since the second century,

s in the Western Church have included affirmation of belief in "God the Father (Almighty)", the primary reference being to "God in his capacity as Father and creator of the universe".Kelly, J.N.D. ''Early Christian Creeds'' Longmans:1960, pp. 136, 139, 195 respectively This did not exclude either the fact the "eternal father of the universe was also the Father of Jesus the Christ" or that he had even "vouchsafed to adopt he believeras his son by grace". Creeds in the Eastern Church (known to have come from a later date) began with an affirmation of faith in "one God" and almost always expanded this by adding "the Father Almighty, Maker of all things visible and invisible" or words to that effect. By the end of the first century, Clement of Rome had repeatedly referred to the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and linked the Father to creation, 1 Clement 19.2 stating: "let us look steadfastly to the Father and Creator of the universe". Veli-Matti Kärkkäinen, ''The Doctrine of God: A Global Introduction'' 2004 pp. 70–74 Around AD 213 in ''Adversus Praxeas'' ( chapter 3)

Tertullian Tertullian (; ; 155 – 220 AD) was a prolific Early Christianity, early Christian author from Roman Carthage, Carthage in the Africa (Roman province), Roman province of Africa. He was the first Christian author to produce an extensive co ...

is believed to have provided a formal representation of the concept of the Trinity, i.e. that God exists as one "substance" but three 'Persons': The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, and with God the Father being the Head.Roger E. Olson, Christopher Alan Hall, ''The Trinity'' 2002 pp. 29–31 Tertullian also discussed how the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son. While the expression "from the Father through the Son" is also found among them. The Nicene Creed, which dates to 325, states that the Son (Jesus Christ) is "born of the Father before all ages", indicating that their ''divine'' Father-Son relationship is seen as not tied to an event within time or human history.

Trinitarian

To Trinitarian Christians (which include Roman Catholics,

Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodoxy, otherwise known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity or Byzantine Christianity, is one of the three main Branches of Christianity, branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholic Church, Catholicism and Protestantism ...

, Oriental Orthodox, Anglicans, and most but not all Protestant denominations), God the Father is not a separate God from God the Son (of whom Jesus is the

incarnation Incarnation literally means ''embodied in flesh'' or ''taking on flesh''. It is the Conception (biology), conception and the embodiment of a deity or spirit in some earthly form or an Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic form of a god. It is used t ...

) and the

Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit, otherwise known as the Holy Ghost, is a concept within the Abrahamic religions. In Judaism, the Holy Spirit is understood as the divine quality or force of God manifesting in the world, particularly in acts of prophecy, creati ...

, the other hypostases of the Christian Godhead.''Critical Terms for Religious Studies.'' Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1998. ''Credo Reference''. 27 July 2009 In Eastern Orthodox theology, God the Father is the ''arche'' or ''principium'' ("beginning"), the "source" or "origin" of both the Son and the Holy Spirit, and is considered the eternal source of the Godhead. The Father is the one who eternally begets the Son, and the Father through the Son eternally breathes the Holy Spirit.Alan Richardson and John Bowden, ''The Westminster Dictionary of Christian Theology'' (1 January 1983) p. 36 As a member of the Trinity, God the Father is one with, co-equal to, co-eternal, and consubstantial with the Son and the Holy Spirit, each Person being the one eternal God and in no way separated: all alike are uncreated and omnipotent. Because of this, the Trinity is beyond reason and can only be known by revelation.Gilles Emery O. P. and Matthew Levering, ''The Oxford Handbook of the Trinity'' (27 October 2011) p. 263Catholic catechism at the Vatican web site, items
242
/ref> The Trinitarian concept of God the Father is not pantheistic in that he is not viewed as identical to the universe or a vague notion that persists in it, but exists fully outside of creation, as its creator. He is viewed as a loving and caring God, a Heavenly Father who is active both in the world and in people's lives.Geoffrey W. Bromiley, ''International Standard Bible Encyclopedia: E–J'' (March 1982) pp. 515–516John Koessler, ''God Our Father'' (13 September 1999) p. 68 He created all things visible and invisible in love and wisdom, and created man for his own sake. The emergence of Trinitarian theology of God the Father in

early Christianity Early Christianity, otherwise called the Early Church or Paleo-Christianity, describes the History of Christianity, historical era of the Christianity, Christian religion up to the First Council of Nicaea in 325. Spread of Christianity, Christian ...

was based on two key ideas: first the shared identity of the

Yahweh Yahweh was an Ancient Semitic religion, ancient Semitic deity of Weather god, weather and List of war deities, war in the History of the ancient Levant, ancient Levant, the national god of the kingdoms of Kingdom of Judah, Judah and Kingdom ...

of the

and the God of Jesus in the

, and then the self-distinction and yet the unity between Jesus and his Father.Veli-Matti Kärkkäinen, ''The Trinity: Global Perspectives'' (17 January 2007) pp. 10–13William A. Dyrness, Veli-Matti Kärkkäinen, Juan F. Martinez and Simon Chan, ''Global Dictionary of Theology'' (10 October 2008) p. 169–171 An example of the unity of Son and Father is Matthew 11:27: "No one knows the Son except the Father and no one knows the Father except the Son", asserting the mutual knowledge of Father and Son.Geoffrey W. Bromiley, ''The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia'' 1988 pp. 571–572 The concept of fatherhood of God does appear in the Old Testament, but is not a major theme. While the view of God as the Father is used in the Old Testament, it only became a focus in the New Testament, as Jesus frequently referred to it. This is manifested in the Lord's Prayer which combines the earthly needs of daily bread with the reciprocal concept of forgiveness. And Jesus' emphasis on his special relationship with the Father highlights the importance of the distinct yet unified natures of Jesus and the Father, building to the unity of Father and Son in the Trinity.Veli-Matti Kärkkäinen, ''The Doctrine of God: A Global Introduction'' 2004 p. 37–41 The paternal view of God as the Father extends beyond Jesus to his disciples, and the entire Church, as reflected in the petitions Jesus submitted to the Father for his followers at the end of the ''

Farewell Discourse In the New Testament, wikisource:Bible (American Standard)/John#14:1, chapters 14–17 of the Gospel of John are known as the Farewell Discourse given by Jesus to eleven of his Disciple (Christianity), disciples immediately after the conclusion o ...

'', the night before his crucifixion.Robert C. Neville, ''Symbols of Jesus'' (4 February 2002) pp. 26–27 Instances of this in the Farewell Discourse are John 14:20 as Jesus addresses the disciples: "I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you" and in John 17:22 as he prays to the Father: "I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one."

Nontrinitarian

A number of Christian groups and communities reject the doctrine of a co-equal Trinity, and generally teach that God the Father is supreme, but nontrinitarian Christian groups differ somewhat from one another in their views regarding God the Father and Christ the Son.Paul Louis Metzger, ''Trinitarian Soundings in Systematic Theology'' 2006 pp. 36, 43 In

Mormonism Mormonism is the theology and religious tradition of the Latter Day Saint movement of Restorationism, Restorationist Christianity started by Joseph Smith in Western New York in the 1820s and 1830s. As a label, Mormonism has been applied to va ...

, including its largest denomination

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Restorationism, restorationist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, denomination and the ...

(LDS Church), the most prominent conception of "the Godhead" is as a divine council of three distinct beings: the Father (who is also referred to as

Elohim ''Elohim'' ( ) is a Hebrew word meaning "gods" or "godhood". Although the word is plural in form, in the Hebrew Bible it most often takes singular verbal or pronominal agreement and refers to a single deity, particularly but not always the Go ...

), the Son Jesus (who is identified with Jehovah of the Old Testament), and the

. The Father and Son are considered to have perfected, physical bodies, while the Holy Spirit has a body of spirit. LDS Church members believe God the Father presides over both the Son and Holy Spirit, where God the Father is greater than both, but they are one in the sense that they have a unity of purpose. Most denominations in the

Latter Day Saint movement The Latter Day Saint movement (also called the LDS movement, LDS restorationist movement, or Smith–Rigdon movement) is the collection of independent church groups that trace their origins to a Christian Restorationist movement founded by ...

also believe God (often referred to as Heavenly Father) has at least one spouse referred to as Heavenly Mother, and together they are called Heavenly Parents. The Assemblies of Yahweh are nontrinitarian, believing that the Father is greater than the Son in all things, and that the Holy Spirit is not equal to the Father, and is not an actual person, but is God's "power" or "character" in action. They refer to God the Father as "

". The Yahweh Assemblies and other Sacred Name groups generally teach that Christ the Son was God's first and prime creation, and was used to create everything else. They believe that the Messiah, whom they call " Yahshua" or "

Yeshua Yeshua () was a common alternative form of the name Yehoshua () in later books of the Hebrew Bible and among Jewish people of the Second Temple period. The name corresponds to the Greek spelling (), from which, through the Latin /, comes the En ...

" or " Yehoshua", died for man's sins, and is to be honored as the Anointed Lord, but that God the Father (Yahweh) is the True God that all "true worshippers" ultimately serve and worship. They teach that the Father is the only eternal one. In Jehovah's Witness theology, only God the Father ( Jehovah) is the one true almighty God, even over his Son Jesus Christ. They teach that the Logos is God's Only-begotten Son, and that the Holy Spirit is God's active force (projected energy). They believe that the Father and the Son are united in divine purpose, administration,

legislation Legislation is the process or result of enrolling, enacting, or promulgating laws by a legislature, parliament, or analogous governing body. Before an item of legislation becomes law it may be known as a bill, and may be broadly referred ...

, and man's salvation, but are not one being and are not equal in power. While the Witnesses acknowledge Jesus’ pre-existence, perfection, and unique "Sonship" from God the Father, and believe that the Logos had an essential role in creation and redemption, and is the Messiah, they believe that only the Father is without beginning. They say that the Son was the Father's only direct creation, before all ages. While both Persons are highly honored, taught, and preached, in their interpretations of John 17:3 and John 14:28, God the Father is emphasized in Jehovah's Witness meetings and services more than Christ the Son, as they teach that the Father is greater than the Son.

Oneness Pentecostalism Oneness Pentecostalism (also known as Apostolic Pentecostalism, Jesus' Name Pentecostalism, or the Oneness movement) is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian branch of Pentecostalism, Pentecostal Christianity that emphasizes the absolute oneness o ...

teaches that God is a singular spirit who is one person, not three divine persons, individuals or minds. God the Father is the title of the supreme creator. The titles of the Son and Holy Spirit are merely titles reflecting the different personal manifestations of the One True God the Father in the universe.See also David Bernard, ''A Handbook of Basic Doctrines'', Word Aflame Press, 1988.

Other religions

Although similarities exist among religions, the common language and the shared concepts about God and his title ''Father'' among the Abrahamic religions is quite limited, and each religion has very specific belief structures and religious nomenclature with respect to the subject.Máire Byrne, ''The Names of God in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam: A Basis for Interfaith Dialogue:'' (8 September 2011) pp. 2–3 While a religious teacher in one faith may be able to explain the concepts to his own audience with ease, significant barriers remain in communicating those concepts across religious boundaries.

Greco-Romanism

Greco-Roman pagans believed in an original triad. Over time, the names and gods of the triad were changed—except for

Jupiter Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the List of Solar System objects by size, largest in the Solar System. It is a gas giant with a Jupiter mass, mass more than 2.5 times that of all the other planets in the Solar System combined a ...

, which means "Father Jove" and comes from Proto-Italic ''Djous Patēr'', from ''Djous'' (“day, sky”) + ''Patēr'' (“father”), from

Proto-Indo-European Proto-Indo-European (PIE) is the reconstructed common ancestor of the Indo-European language family. No direct record of Proto-Indo-European exists; its proposed features have been derived by linguistic reconstruction from documented Indo-Euro ...

'' Dyḗws'' (literally “the bright one”), root nomen agentis from ''Dyew''- (“to be bright, day sky”), and ''Ph₂tḗr'' (“father”).

God Worshipping Society

A syncretic sect created by Hong Xiuquan, founder of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, that mixed

Protestantism Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

and

Chinese folk religion Chinese folk religion comprises a range of traditional religious practices of Han Chinese, including the Chinese diaspora. This includes the veneration of ''Shen (Chinese folk religion), shen'' ('spirits') and Chinese ancestor worship, ances ...

, the objective of this sect was to overthrow the

Manchu The Manchus (; ) are a Tungusic peoples, Tungusic East Asian people, East Asian ethnic group native to Manchuria in Northeast Asia. They are an officially recognized Ethnic minorities in China, ethnic minority in China and the people from wh ...

s and restore power to the Han. God consisted of a triad made up of Shangdi (the Supreme Emperor in ancient Chinese worship), Christ as the eldest son and Hong as the youngest son.

Hinduism

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Hypernymy and hyponymy, umbrella term for a range of Indian religions, Indian List of religions and spiritual traditions#Indian religions, religious and spiritual traditions (Sampradaya, ''sampradaya''s) that are unified ...

, Bhagavan Krishna in the

Bhagavad Gita The Bhagavad Gita (; ), often referred to as the Gita (), is a Hindu texts, Hindu scripture, dated to the second or first century BCE, which forms part of the Hindu epic, epic poem Mahabharata. The Gita is a synthesis of various strands of Ind ...

, chapter 9, verse 17, stated: "I am the Father of this world, the Mother, the Dispenser and the Grandfather", one commentator adding: "God being the source of the universe and the beings in it, He is held as the Father, the Mother and the Grandfather". A genderless

Brahman In Hinduism, ''Brahman'' (; IAST: ''Brahman'') connotes the highest universal principle, the ultimate reality of the universe.P. T. Raju (2006), ''Idealistic Thought of India'', Routledge, , page 426 and Conclusion chapter part XII In the ...

is also considered the creator and Life-giver, and the Shakta goddess is viewed as the divine mother and life-bearer.

Islam

Unlike in Judaism, the term "father" is not formally applied to God by Muslims, and the Christian notion of the Trinity is rejected in Islam. Even though traditional Islamic teaching does not formally prohibit using the term "Father" in reference to God, it does not propagate or encourage it. There are some narratives of the Islamic prophet

Muhammad Muhammad (8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious and political leader and the founder of Islam. Muhammad in Islam, According to Islam, he was a prophet who was divinely inspired to preach and confirm the tawhid, monotheistic teachings of A ...

in which he compares the mercy of God toward his worshipers to that of a mother to her infant child. Islamic teaching rejects the Christian father-son relationship of God and

Jesus Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

, and states that Jesus is a prophet of God, not the Son of God.Hans Köchler, ''The Concept of Monotheism in Islam and Christianity'' 1982 p. 38 Islamic theology strictly reiterates the Absolute Oneness of God, and totally separates him from other beings (whether humans, angel or any other holy figure), and rejects any form of dualism or Trinitarianism. Chapter 112 of the Quran states:

Judaism

In Judaism, the use of the "Father" title is generally a

, referring to the role as Life-giver and Law-giver, and is one of many titles by which Jews speak of and to God. The Jewish concept of God is that God is non-corporeal, transcendent and immanent, the ultimate source of love,The real Messiah (pdf)
/ref> and a metaphorical "Father". The

Aramaic Aramaic (; ) is a Northwest Semitic language that originated in the ancient region of Syria and quickly spread to Mesopotamia, the southern Levant, Sinai, southeastern Anatolia, and Eastern Arabia, where it has been continually written a ...

term for father (, ''

abba ABBA ( ) were a Swedish pop group formed in Stockholm in 1972 by Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. They are one of the most popular and successful musical groups of all time, and are one of the List ...

'') appears in traditional Jewish liturgy and Jewish prayers to

God In monotheistic belief systems, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. In polytheistic belief systems, a god is "a spirit or being believed to have created, or for controlling some part of the un ...

(e.g. in the Kaddish). According to Ariela Pelaia, in a prayer of

Rosh Hashanah Rosh Hashanah (, , ) is the New Year in Judaism. The Hebrew Bible, biblical name for this holiday is Yom Teruah (, , ). It is the first of the High Holy Days (, , 'Days of Awe"), as specified by Leviticus 23:23–25, that occur in the late summe ...

, Areshet Sfateinu, an ambivalent attitude toward God is demonstrated, due to his role as a father and as a king. Free translation of the relevant sentence may be: "today every creature is judged, either as sons or as slaves. If as sons, forgive us like a father forgives his son. If as slaves, we wait, hoping for good, until the verdict, your holy majesty." Another famous prayer emphasizing this dichotomy is called Avinu Malkeinu, which means "Our Father Our King" in Hebrew. Usually the entire congregation will sing the last verse of this prayer in unison, which says: "Our Father, our King, answer us as though we have no deed to plead our cause, save us with mercy and loving-kindness."

Sikhism

The Guru Granth consistently refers to the creator as "He" and "Father". This is because the Granth is written in north Indian Indo-Aryan languages (mixture of Punjabi and dialects of Hindi) which have no neutral gender. Since the Granth says that the God is indescribable, God has no gender according to Sikhism. – Who is God? What does God look like? – Real Sikhism – Exploring the Sikh Religion. Retrieved 8 April 2014. God in the Sikh scriptures has been referred to by several names, picked from Indian and Semitic traditions. He is called in terms of human relations as father, mother, brother, relation, friend, lover, beloved, husband. Other names, expressive of his supremacy, are ''thakur'', ''prabhu'', ''svami'', ''sah'', ''patsah'', ''sahib'', ''sain'' (Lord, Master).

In Western art

For about a thousand years, no attempt was made to portray God the Father in human form, because early Christians believed that the words of Exodus 33:20 "Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see Me and live" and of the Gospel of John 1:18: "No man hath seen God at any time" were meant to apply not only to the Father, but to all attempts at the depiction of the Father.James Cornwell, 2009 ''Saints, Signs, and Symbols: The Symbolic Language of Christian Art'' p. 2 Typically only a small part of the body of Father would be represented, usually the hand, or sometimes the face, but rarely the whole person, and in many images, the figure of the Son supplants the Father, so a smaller portion of the person of the Father is depicted. In the early medieval period God was often represented by Christ as the '' Logos'', which continued to be very common even after the separate figure of God the Father appeared. Western art eventually required some way to illustrate the presence of the Father, so through successive representations a set of artistic styles for the depiction of the Father in human form gradually emerged around the tenth century AD. Jacob Herreyns I - God the Father

By the twelfth century depictions of a figure of God the Father, essentially based on the Ancient of Days in the Book of Daniel had started to appear in French manuscripts and in stained glass church windows in England. In the 14th century the illustrated Naples Bible had a depiction of God the Father in the

Burning bush The burning bush (or the unburnt bush) refers to an event recorded in the Jewish Torah (as also in the biblical Old Testament and Islamic scripture). It is described in the third chapter of the Book of Exodus as having occurred on Mount Horeb ...

. By the 15th century, the Rohan Book of Hours included depictions of God the Father in human form or anthropomorphic imagery. Though the depiction remains rare and often controversial in

art, by the time of the

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...

artistic representations of God the Father were freely used in the Western Church.George Ferguson, 1996 ''Signs & symbols in Christian art'' p. 92

References

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* {{Authority control Biblical phrases Creator gods Conceptions of God Names of God Patriology Trinitarianism Wisdom gods Justice gods Fatherhood