Not Only a Father

by Tim Bulkeley

The God of the Bible is not a member of any class of comparable beings. Beyond and other than all gods and every creature, God is not gendered. However, Christian language for God and the pictures we use to help us talk about God are predominantly male. Among the pictures one of the most often used and appreciated is ‘father’. Yet God (unlike many of the gods of the ancient world) is not only a father. The Bible and the early Christian theologians used motherly as well as fatherly language and pictures to speak of God. In this way at least their image of God was richer and deeper than ours! This book encourages readers to appropriate this wider range of pictures of what God is like, and to learn again to relate to a God who is beyond all imagining and closer than life itself. This God is not only a father!

160 pages, Paperback

First published November 22, 2011

Reviews

[Sharolyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The creator of the universe is neither a father nor a mother... This is why the image of God is not in man or woman alone, but male and female together (Gen 1:27). If this is true then to worship God as a father alone is to worship something that is less than the creator of all... a god we have created for ourselves, not the biblical God. This is idolatory." (p.96)

The idea of being a Christian Feminist is dangerous sounding (perhaps more so in particular circles). For that reason I have approached my learning in this area with some trepidation, not wanting to cause trouble and stir things up. However, the more I think and read, and especially after this book, I feel like thinking of God as 'Not Only A Father', even as a mother dare I say, has enormous positive implications for helping us ALL to see, fathom, connect, relate to and know God (and thus ourselves) more fully. Rather than being a dangerous perspective, this becomes then, as far as I am concerned, the only sensible approach. Most would acknowledge that God is neither male nor female and yet we persist with relating to God as 'He' and 'Father' alone. So how do we change this? Gradually and gently I suppose...

This was not 'light' reading but I am so glad to read thorough theological work on this topic that approaches it in a balanced way. I have no doubt I will come back to theses chapters for reference in the future. The chapter about application towards the end was my favourite - with great devotional style material which was quite moving - and shows something of the generous place that author Tim Bulkeley is writing from. The concluding chapter also provides an excellent summary for those less inclined to read it all.