Devotion to Father Abraham

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According to Sacred Scripture, Abraham is our Father in Faith. He is venerated as a model of faith by both St. Paul and St. James, and was highly regarded by the Jews. If he is our spiritual father, and clearly played such a prominent role in salvation history (God brought salvation through his lineage and blessed him greatly), why isn’t there more widespread devotion tp Father Abraham?

(Or, for that matter, any of the great Old Testament saints).

Even our Lord accords Abraham a great honour. In Matthew 8:11, we are told that 'many will come…and will take their places…with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven." In Mat. 3:9, our Lord says that God can raise up children for Abraham from ‘these rocks’, which I believe applies to us (Gentile Christians). Our Lady speaks highly of Abraham in Lk 1:54-56. Again, our Lord singles out Abraham (and Isaac and Jacob) among those in the Kingdom of God on the last day in Lk 13:28. Again in John 8, our Lord speaks at length on Father Abraham.

In Romans 4, St. Paul explains how Abraham has become the Father of all Christians…and that he is, as God promised, the ‘father of many nations’. In Gal. 3:1-14, St. Paul again affirms that Abraham is our Father.

I’m not saying that Abraham is necessarily the greatest of all the saints (here using the term to include the righteous of the OT as well), for Hebrews 7 suggests that Melchizedek was perhaps greater, for example; however, if we venerate Mary as our Mother (which she is), shouldn’t we also keep in mind that Abraham is said to be our spiritual father? (Of course, our Lady is greater than Abraham, I am simply drawing a parallel).
In Christ,
Tyler
 
Well, for some reason there just doesn’t seem to be any type of devotion to Old Testament figures in general. I’m kind of curious as to why myself.
 
They are honoured in the Liturgy at times…but as far as private devotions go…
 
Perhaps private devotions are more likely to arise when someone who is well-known dies, and then a group becomes devoted to them. But Abraham died long ago, and at that time, no group developed a devotion to him. I guess I think it would have been out of the pattern to develop a devotion to someone long after they have died, instead of fairly quickly.

I have asked for his intercession, however. Maybe I am the oddball that way.
 
Perhaps people can relate more to saints who had connection with the Mass and the life of Christ, rather than Old Testament figures who led a Jewish life.
 
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exoflare:
Well, for some reason there just doesn’t seem to be any type of devotion to Old Testament figures in general.
Click to expand...
There are many churches dedicated to St. David, that is, King David, the Psalmist.

Yet, I can’t name any other person from the Old Testament to whom I’ve seen a church dedicated to…

:blessyou:
 
Those reasons make sense, on a practical level, and that is what my pastor suggested when I discussed it with him (the lack of a direct connection at the grassroots level). But if he is our Father in faith, and such an important figure in the salvation history, why hasn’t the Church herself encouraged for devotion to him, I wonder.
 
I am starting to get the impression that our Eastern brothers and sisters (whether Catholic or Orthodox) do practice more widespread veneration of the great OT saints…including Father Abraham. Can anyone confirm this?
 
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