P
PatienceAndLove
Guest
This is one of my thought consuming musings that has been with me since a discussion in my History of Christianity class yesterday. Please feel free to correct me if you think I am entirely off-base.
In class, we were discussing the nature of God as Creator and Father, and whether or not He is all-loving, especially in regard to free will and death/destruction. I brought up parents as an example. We can be told and told and told, but sometimes they have to step back and let us screw up on our own before we figure it out. And I said God was like that. He created us, He gave us rules, He gave us people to remind us of these rules… but sometimes we take our God given free will and screw up. That’s when we figure out why these rules exist.
Now, here’s where my musings come in. (Sorry it took so long). For this to work, you have to place God and the Church in the stereotypical roles of Father and Mother. In a stereotypical Father/Mother relationship, it is the Father who gives us the rules we are to obey. It is Mother who is home with us, raising us, teaching us, and reinforcing the rules given to us by our Father.
In this: God, as our Father, gave us the rules we are to abide by. It is the Church, Mother Church, who is there for us to reinforce the teachings and rules that The Father has given us. It is she (The Church) who tells us what our punishment will be for not following the rules (the good old “wait until your Father hears about this” or “Just wait until your Father gets home!”). The Church is the one who teaches us. The Church stands by us, guides us, reminds us to come back when we start to stray, chastises us when we go too far, encourages us when we go the right direction, and throws us a party when we finally figure it out.
But sometimes, no matter how much God and The Church tell us, they sometimes have to “step back” and let us figure it out (a figurative falling on the face, or burning our hand on the stove), but they are always there to help us pick ourselves up, dust us off, bandage the wound (kiss it and make it better), and to welcome us home.
It is in the Church that we find the perfect relationship between our Heavenly Father- God- and our Earthly guidance and spiritual Mother- the Church. They are the perfect compliment to each other, just as our biological parents are the perfect compliment to each other.
In class, we were discussing the nature of God as Creator and Father, and whether or not He is all-loving, especially in regard to free will and death/destruction. I brought up parents as an example. We can be told and told and told, but sometimes they have to step back and let us screw up on our own before we figure it out. And I said God was like that. He created us, He gave us rules, He gave us people to remind us of these rules… but sometimes we take our God given free will and screw up. That’s when we figure out why these rules exist.
Now, here’s where my musings come in. (Sorry it took so long). For this to work, you have to place God and the Church in the stereotypical roles of Father and Mother. In a stereotypical Father/Mother relationship, it is the Father who gives us the rules we are to obey. It is Mother who is home with us, raising us, teaching us, and reinforcing the rules given to us by our Father.
In this: God, as our Father, gave us the rules we are to abide by. It is the Church, Mother Church, who is there for us to reinforce the teachings and rules that The Father has given us. It is she (The Church) who tells us what our punishment will be for not following the rules (the good old “wait until your Father hears about this” or “Just wait until your Father gets home!”). The Church is the one who teaches us. The Church stands by us, guides us, reminds us to come back when we start to stray, chastises us when we go too far, encourages us when we go the right direction, and throws us a party when we finally figure it out.
But sometimes, no matter how much God and The Church tell us, they sometimes have to “step back” and let us figure it out (a figurative falling on the face, or burning our hand on the stove), but they are always there to help us pick ourselves up, dust us off, bandage the wound (kiss it and make it better), and to welcome us home.
It is in the Church that we find the perfect relationship between our Heavenly Father- God- and our Earthly guidance and spiritual Mother- the Church. They are the perfect compliment to each other, just as our biological parents are the perfect compliment to each other.
