Our Father, Our Mother?

[hismusic]

Hello. In a recent homily our priest was explaining the different parts of the Lord’s prayer. He began with “our Father” and then said "or you can say Our Mother, whichever you prefer. I asked him today to elaborate on that for me (because it really threw me) and he explained that God has no gender, and that in the bible many times he takes on feminine characteristics. He mentioned Wisdom. What is the specific Catholic teaching on this topic?

 

[Fr.Vincent_Serpa]

Hi,

While it is true that God has no gender, Jesus consistently refered to God as “Father.” Not only that, he described God as “Abba” which is a familiar way of saying “Father” akin to “Daddy”. But most of all, Jesus taught us to call Him “Father” when we pray. That being said, your pastor has no right to change the prayer that Jesus Himself authored. If Jesus has taught us to call God “Father” then that is what we are to call Him!

Fr. Vincent Serpa, O.P.