From Paternal Absence to Purposeful Fatherhood: A Call to Reflect God in the Family
A 1998 study by Luis Rosero-Bixby in Costa Rica revealed that more than a quarter (28%) of births did not have a legally recognized father. Of the 50,000 births in 2023, approximately 8.5% did not include the father on the birth certificate. Although the number has dropped significantly, a historical problem is clearly evident: the absence of a stable father figure in many Costa Rican families.
The first study included children born in the 1990s, who are now adults, many of them fathers. Some have replicated the patterns they experienced, and others have grown up without a stable father figure or without legal recognition of their father. The damage caused by this absence has, unfortunately, been normalized in our society. The father figure has been blurred by lack of interest, abandonment, abuse, and indifference. This has generated a culture in which the father figure, instead of being valued, is often viewed with distrust or contempt.
However, when we look at the Bible, we find a completely different model of fatherhood, even finding God as God the Father. Scripture presents the role of the father as a noble task, given to courageous men, called to rule their homes with wisdom, love, and righteousness. God is not only our Creator, but also our loving Father, and the reflection of His fatherhood can guide our own way of exercising this role.
Today, many Christians face internal conflicts when they hear that God is Father. This is because their earthly experience with their own fathers has been painful, distant, or nonexistent. Therefore, when we begin to know God, the figure of a "heavenly Father" can cause discomfort, doubt, or confusion. But how can an earthly father reflect a caring God? How can we restore the value and purpose of fatherhood?
As parents, we have the opportunity to reflect God the Father in our daily actions, filled with grace and love.
Proverbs 3:11–12 (NIV) "My son, do not despise the Lord's discipline or resent his rebuke. For the Lord disciplines those he loves, as a father disciplines his beloved son." Reflection: A father who disciplines with love is imitating God, who guides and shapes his children through just discipline.
Psalm 103:13 (NIV) "As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him." Reflection: A father's tenderness toward his children is a direct reflection of God's compassion. A present and responsive father shows the loving face of the heavenly Father.
Matthew 7:9–11 (NIV) "Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him!" Reflection: Jesus compares human parenting with divine parenting to show us that if we, though imperfect, seek the good for our children, how much more will God do the same for us!
Proverbs 22:6 (NIV) "Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it." Reflection: Parents are called to train and disciple their children from an early age, reflecting God's desire to shape our character with patience and perseverance.
The challenge of parenting is not easy. But when we see it through the gospel, we understand that we are not alone. We have a God who loves us, corrects us, comforts us, and guides us. Each of these experiences with Him equips us to do the same with our children: to serve them, correct them with love, care for them, lift them up when they fall, share grace and truth with them, and above all, guide them to Christ.
Our greatest job as parents is not limited to providing or protecting, but to guiding our children toward the truth. And that truth is Jesus. Not just with words, but with actions, reflecting the love and compassion of the heavenly Father in our family life, our relationships, and our marriage.
Parenting, guided by divine principles, becomes a valuable means of reflecting the love and essence of God the Father.
