italian version

 

God as Mother

 

 

Giovanni De Sio Cesari

www.giovannidesio.it

 

Traditionally, God has always been referred to as Father. However, in modern times, influenced by woke ideology, there is a tendency to see every word and action as a conscious or unconscious attempt to restore a patriarchal concept. The term has been questioned, leading to discussions about God as Mother, and some gender supporters have even used this to promote the idea of fluid gender.

Once, people would say "talking about the sex of angels" to refer to a meaningless discussion. Here, we are talking about the sex of God. It is clear to everyone that God is beyond nature, eternal, and unchanging, and therefore certainly does not have sexual organs, or any material organs for that matter.

When it is said that God created man in His own image and likeness, it certainly does not mean that God has arms, legs, and therefore also sexual organs (male or female). It refers to the fact that man has an immortal soul (or reason, consciousness, freedom, etc.), making him different from any other animal.

From a Christian perspective, it seems inappropriate to attribute even male or female sentiments to God (apart from organs). God is not a human being and therefore does not have the psychological characteristics of human beings, whether female or male. In polytheistic religions, gods are anthropomorphized, conceived in human form, more like superheroes than divinities: they are male and female like humans and sometimes unite to procreate other gods, sometimes even with humans. However, even in paganism, there was an underlying concept of a supreme being (Aristotle's unmoved mover, the Greek Ananke, the Roman Fate, the mystery religions, etc.), and this being had no sex.

In monotheisms, God is the supreme spiritual being, and no one would assign Him a body, much less a sex: this would be sacrilege. Therefore, God is neither male nor female, nor gay, nor transgender, or anything of the sort. It would be like asking the sex of the sea or the moon.

We use masculine, feminine (and neuter) genders to indicate non-sexed objects, and this also applies to God. For this reason, in Judaism (and Islam), God could not be depicted, which led to a generalized iconoclastic prohibition. However, even we Christians do not depict God except through symbols.

Some believe that referring to God in masculine terms serves a patriarchal view where authority always and inevitably belongs to men, a notion that doesn't seem entirely unfounded. In ecclesiastical teaching and the Bible, there are comparisons (but only comparisons) between God's love and both maternal and paternal love.

Notably, Pope Luciani once concluded an Angelus with: "We know that God always has His eyes open on us, even when it seems to be night. He is a father; even more so, He is a mother." These concepts were reiterated by Pope John Paul II, who stated, "The merciful father of the parable contains within himself, transcending them, all the traits of fatherhood and motherhood. Embracing his son, he shows the semblance of a mother who caresses her son and surrounds him with her warmth."

However, these are always comparisons, just as the traditional masculine identification of God is only a traditional use of language. The problem of the Genesis account of the creation of woman has also been raised.

The fact that God first creates man and then woman from his rib can only be interpreted symbolically. It is evident that male organs presuppose female organs (and vice versa), and therefore it would not make sense to create only one sex. The meaning might suggest male supremacy, but it could also imply that woman is always part of man, not an inferior being.