Fatherless America: Rediscovering Our Greatest Revelation

Our greatest revelation of God is discovered in Jesus. Hebrews 1:3 says, "The Son (Jesus) is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being." Jesus as the Son of God came into this world to reveal to us that God is our Father (John 17:5-6). The meaning of our life stems from our relationship with God and with Jesus. Because God is a Father, this means He is relational. A father cannot be defined alone. To be a father is to be a father of someone. Our activities in life should be an extension of our relationship with God as our Father.

After riding the bike in the gym one day last week, I entered into a conversation with a gentlemen who was getting ready to start running on the track. I had just recently discovered that he was going through a divorce. As you can imagine, many things were discussed during this moment as he reflected back on his life and marriage experience. One point I took note of in our conversation was the fact that his father had died when he was five years old. Because of his wanton and drunken behavior, his father lost many years of his life. Sadly as he talked, he mentioned the only thing he learned from his father was not to be like him. As we ended our conversation, I headed to the locker room pondering this thought-- if this gentlemen had been properly fathered, would his marriage ended in divorce?

It is frightening to think about the devastating effects fatherlessness has had on America. Malachi 4:6 tells us that when the hearts of the fathers are turned away from their children, and as a result the hearts of the children are turned away from the fathers, our land will be cursed. The absence of paternal transmission contributes to a decline of character and competence in our children. Without fathers, boys become less masculine and girls less feminine. When fathers are absent, boys are more prone to violence and girls are more susceptible to sexual promiscuity. The primary result is boys with more guns and girls with more illegitimate babies.

In the November 7th issue of ESPN magazine, Sheryl Swoopes of the Houston Comets is featured in an article titled, "Outside the Arc." The article talks about how this recent Most Valuable Player of the Womens National Basketball Association has discovered that she is a lesbian. On page 120, she makes an interesting and revealing comment about her relationship with her father. She describes her relationship with her father as non-existent saying, "My father was never around--I never met him." Many studies confirm that girls who grow up without fathers are at a much greater risk for early sexual activity, adolescent childbearing, divorce and lack of sexual identity. In Romans 1:18-32, Paul teaches that the final downfall of a society is when natural relations are exchanged for unnatural ones. God help us.

In Fatherless America, David Blankenhorn addresses our most pressing social problem. He says, "The most urgent domestic challenge facing the United States at the close of the 21st century is the re-creation of fatherhood as a vital social role for men. At state is nothing less than the success of the American experiment. For unless we reverse the trend of fatherlessness, no other set of accomplishments--not economic growth or prison construction or welfare reform or better schools--will succeed in arresting the decline of child well-being and the spread of male violence. To tolerate the trend of fatherlessness is to accept the inevitability of continued societal recession."

Because of the importance of the father to the benefit of society, it is the position most attacked by the devil. The devil knows that if he can destroy the father, he can eradicate the greatest revelation of God. Unfortunately, a majority of men have been captured in his destructive plan by participating in immorality, greed and impurity. As a result, they have abandoned their children. In 1990, more than 36 percent of all children in the nation were living apart from their fathers--more than double the rate in 1960. The trend shows no sign of slowing down. Indeed, it seems quite probable that, as of 1994, fully 40 percent of all children in the nation did not live with their fathers. Scholars estimate that, before they reach age eighteen, more than half of all children in the nation will live apart from their fathers for at least a significant portion of their childhoods (Fatherless America)

Our greatest revelation of God as a father is profound. The essence of fatherhood is simple. A father for every child born. But in our society, few ideas could be more radical. Embracing the fatherhood idea would require a fundamental shift in cultural values and in parental behavior. No other change in American family life could produce such dramatic improvement in child and societal well being. I pray the hearts of the fathers will return to their children. If so, once again America will live as a nation blessed by God.