Use these ideas in a service or as part of a special event.
Father's Day has not traditionally been celebrated by the Church in the same way as Mothering Sunday but, given the wealth of references, both biblical and otherwise, to God as our Father, it seems to be an ideal opportunity to explore what these references are telling us about God, at the same time as celebrating our earthly fathers.
Arriving
As people arrive, ask them to match pictures of fathers and children displayed round the wall. Often, characteristics are similar – but include a couple of unlike pairs as well. Add a notice saying, 'Then God said, 'Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness.' ' (Genesis 1.26a).
When all the answers have been given, talk about the fact that we are all, in some way, made in the image of God. We may not look like God – just as some children don't look like their parents, particularly, of course, if the relationship is not biological. There is, however, some kind of likeness between us that helps us to relate to God as our Father.
Thinking about fathers
So what does it mean to call God our Father? And why do we celebrate our fathers on Father's Day?
On a flipchart jot down people's ideas of what a good father is and does. Group very specific answers under a more general heading: so, 'being a policeman' goes under 'providing for me'; 'cuddling me' goes with 'loving me'; 'telling me off' goes with 'teaching me right from wrong'. List all of the responses down one side of the paper.
Now review the list and try to decide as a group how many of the characteristics of fatherhood you can apply to God. Try to find specific examples for each heading that you ascribe to him, just as for the dads. Hopefully, most of the headings will translate from the human to the divine quite readily, although the concrete examples of fatherly activity will be quite different.
This may also be a good time to ask whether fathers only father us, or whether they can 'mother' us, too. God, of course, can do anything, so can be our mother, too. Perhaps this is a theme that could be revisited on Mothering Sunday!
Try the exercise the other way, now adding any aspects of God's fatherhood that got left out, then seeing if they can be echoed by anything that our dads are or do. One aspect that may crop up here is creativity. God fathered us because he is the author of all creation, ourselves included. In order to translate this across, it is probably enough to say that both a father and a mother are involved when it comes to making a new baby!
There may be children, or adults, if this is being done in an all-age setting, who are distinctly uncomfortable about comparing their own fathers with God. You probably need to stress that God does fathering properly; fulfilling all of the obligations implied by the headings we have created, even when our own fathers sometimes fall down on the job, reject it completely, or do it in a damaging way.
Making and doing
In all of these activities, be very sensitive to any children whose fathers have died or left home, or children who have step-dads.
Cards
Make Father's Day cards – one for Dad, or one just for God. Ask everyone to choose an attribute from your chart that best represents how they think of their own father, or about how a father should be, or about God, and write a card with the words 'Dear Dad/God, thank you for ...(loving me, being strong, and so on.)' Decorate them lavishly and provide envelopes. Deliver them during the service or at the end, the dad ones to the dads, and the God ones into a basket to be offered to God. (They could be then taken home and put on display.)
Sing or say
In groups, make up a rhyme, song or rap from the lists you have made in the Thinking about fathers activity above, preferably alternating verses describing 'my dad' and 'God'. Perform, with actions if possible, to the congregation as a treat for all the fathers present.
Superdad
Older children might enjoy creating a cartoon character, Superdad. Encourage them to give him extraordinary powers relevant to the job of parenting. Display the pictures. Talk about the fact that God is not a cartoon character, or a fantasy figure, but an extraordinarily wonderful Father to us all.
Presents
Make Father's Day presents. Take a square of cardboard and stick on it three cardboard tubes of varying lengths, standing upright. Decorate them with paint, glitter, stickers and so on. Add a few inexpensive pens and pencils to create a desk-tidy. The children could write a favourite Bible verse around the base on the subject of fatherhood.
Promises
Use a set of blank postcards, three or four per child, hole-punched in one corner and tied together. On each card let the child write, or be helped to write, a chore that they are offering to do to help their fathers. Write in white crayon or use a white candle. The cards are to be given to fathers, to reveal one message a day (using watercolour paint) until they are used up.
Our Father
Learn a new version of the Lord's Prayer. Find a copy of it in a different language, or in sign language, or set to music. Practise it and use it in your prayers together.
My family and God
Return to the theme, Our likeness to God, suggested above. Get the children to draw or paint a picture of their father, or of an important member of their family, or a carer. Then ask them to add a picture or symbol of God – maybe a literal picture of a physical presence, or something more abstract, like a swirl of colours or textures. Where does God fit in this family?
Praying
Father of all, we thank you for your loving kindness and care for us.
Thank you for giving us families, to mirror your love and to teach us to love others.
We thank you especially today for our fathers and all that they do for us.
Bless them and uphold them, that they may be shining examples of fatherhood
and reflect your love to their children.
We ask this in the name of your Son, our Brother and our Lord, Jesus Christ.
Amen.
Lord God, you are the perfect Father to us all.
Bless all fathers in the world today.
Give them love, to share with their children.
Give them wisdom, to teach their children.
Give them courage, when the job seems hard.
Give them patience, when things don't go to plan.
Give them strength, to carry their children when they are tired or frightened.
Give them love, to share with their children, and let it be enough.
Amen.
Dear God
We pray for all children whose fathers have died, or whom they do not see any more.
We pray for any children who are frightened of their fathers.
Please bless and protect these precious children, and help them to know your healing love.
Amen.
Hymns and songs
Songs in Junior Praise:
Abba Father
Father God, I wonder
Father, I place into your hands
Father, we adore you
Father, we love you
How great is our God
Our Father who is in heaven
Widely available:
Dear Lord and Father of mankind
Father, hear the prayer we offer
Great is your faithfulness
Songs in Soul Survivor:
I have heard so many songs (The Father's Song)
Heart of the Father
Moving with the Father
Songs in Kidsource:
Thank you, God, for this good day
God is our Father
Father God, I come to you
Safe in the Father's hands
Resources
Parenting Papas: Unusual Animal Fathers, by Judy Cutchin, Ginny Johnston (contrib.) and Judy Atchins (photos), HarperCollins Juvenile Books, 1994, ISBN 0688122558, is a non-fiction book for primary-age children about fathers in the world of wildlife who do a good or unusual job of parenting.
Some suitable Bible verses or passages to use as a text for the session, if required, might be: Exodus 20.12, Proverbs 4.1-4, Matthew 6.5-13 and one which the children may enjoy: Ephesians 6.1-4 (particularly v. 4!).
These resources were first published in ROOTS Issue 11 May/June 2004.