Marriage & Family Life: Fathers

by Adam Storey | June 20, 2018

One of the greatest gifts I have received in my life is my father.

I am so blessed to have a father who is still my hero, a man who is certainly human and not perfect, but a man I can still aspire to resemble.

Study after study has shown how important fathers are in the lives of their children, they are vital for the psychological, emotional and spiritual health of their sons and daughters.

When I was in seminary, our rector, Father William Baer, used to challenge us by saying constantly that the world needs strong fathers, and that every man, regardless of biological children, is called to be a father. He taught us that fundamentally a father provides, protects and establishes his children.

These traits are not just material or economic. A father is meant to provide a spiritual foundation for his children, and moral protection in a world that can often lead us away from the good.

A father establishes his children by empowering them, reminding them that they are loved and talented, and that God has some definitive work for each of us to do.

As I’ve grown older, I have seen the wisdom of Father Baer. I have had so many fathers in my life that have blessed me: my dad but also coaches, NCO’s in the Marines, and especially so many of our diocesan priests.

The importance of fathers in no way diminishes the beautiful and vital role of mothers. The world needs both!

But especially as we are about to celebrate Father’s Day, let’s thank God for the fathers we’ve had in our own lives. And for my male readers, let’s pray for the grace to be the fathers the world so desperately needs.