Lydia Maria Francis Child, an American abolitionist, women’s rights activist, Indian rights activist, novelist, and journalist, once said concerning fathers, “Blessed indeed is the man who hears many gentle voices call him father!” And, Mark Wahlberg, an American actor, producer, model, and former rapper (known as Marky Mark in his earlier years),
once made the profound statement, “This is my most important role. If I fail at this, I fail at everything.”
So, what is a father? The dictionary defines the word “father” as “a man in relation to his natural child or children.” The word is derived from the Latin word “pater.” The actual word “pater” is used in English when referring to a person’s legal father. Another derivative of the Latin root “pater” is “paternal.” Therefore, when referring to a person’s “paternal” kindred, the reference is being made to those persons of whom his legal father (pater) is a direct offspring.
Fatherhood – A Wonderful, Eternal Principle
In a June 2002 message to fathers, the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles (the second-highest presiding group within The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (inadvertently referred to as the Mormon Church by the media and others) exhorted.” The Lord’s plan of salvation requires that you pass through trials in this mortal life. Those trials seem to be greatest when you reach fatherhood, but be assured—fatherhood, in a sense, is an apprenticeship to godhood” (Father, Consider Your Ways, Ensign, June 2002, 12.)
Latter-day Saint fathers have been taught from their youth by leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ, as well as, through the lessons that they are continuously taught in their priesthood quorums, that they have a solemn sacred duty and responsibility, and an extremely important role to play as the patriarch of their homes. Ezra Taft Benson, the 13th President and Prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ reminded fathers:
The sacred title of ‘father’ is shared with the Almighty. In the Church men are called and released. Did you ever hear of a mortal father being released?
“…Fatherhood is not a matter of station or wealth; it is a matter of desire, diligence, and determination to see one’s family exalted in the celestial kingdom. If that prize is lost, nothing else really matters” (Great Things Required of Their Fathers, Ensign, May 1981, 36)
In another address to fathers titled To the Fathers in Israel, President Benson further taught,
Fathers, yours is an eternal calling from which you are never released. Callings in the Church, as important as they are, by their very nature are only for a period of time, and then an appropriate release takes place. But a father’s calling is eternal, and its importance transcends time. It is a calling for both time and eternity” (To the Fathers in Israel, Ensign, Nov 1987, 48.)
And so, Latter-day Saint fathers are taught that being a father is not just a moral obligation that lasts until the end of mortality, but rather, they will continue to be fathers throughout eternity.
Mormon Fathers are “Normal” Fathers
The question may arise, “Are Mormon fathers different from “normal” fathers?” The short and long of that answer is that Mormon fathers are normal fathers.
A Mormon father loves his wife and children and does everything within his capability to ensure the well-being of his family. He goes to work every day and earns a paycheck that he uses to provide for his family’s temporal needs. He works in such vocations as construction worker, electrician, plumber, musician, actor, banker, lawyer, school teacher, and grocery store clerk, to name but a few. There are Mormon fathers who work on Wall Street and in prestigious offices in Washington, D.C., and there are those who work in small towns, inner cities, and suburbs. Nothing any different than a “normal” father does on a daily routine basis.
At the end of his day, a Mormon father is tired and sweaty and looks forward to going home to be with his family. His day does not end when he reaches the threshold of his home. Once at home, he assumes his responsibilities as husband and father by perhaps helping his wife to finish preparing dinner, or taking care of the children until dinner is ready. He helps with homework, bath time, makes sure that teeth are brushed, helps get pajamas on, reads bedtime stories, and presides over the family evening prayer.
Mormon Fathers strive to be Righteous Examples
In addition, a Mormon father is the priesthood leader of his home – the patriarch of his family. As such, he is the spiritual leader of the home, and realizes that he has an awesome responsibility, with the help of his companion, to ensure that the feet of his progeny are firmly grounded on gospel principles.
As the priesthood leader of the home, he may also be called upon at various times to administer priesthood blessings to his family. A Mormon father realizes that his is a sacred
responsibility – in which he has been given a charge, a stewardship from Heavenly Father – and that the proper way to execute that charge, to guard and protect that stewardship, is through righteous example. His ultimate goal is not so much to leave his progeny with material things when he departs his earthly life, but rather, a spiritual legacy that they will be able to continue to build upon as they build and strengthen their own testimonies of gospel truths, and strive for exaltation.
Kim Crenshaw Sorensen, a member of the Northridge Eighth Ward, Orem Utah Northridge Stake in a February 1995 article in the Ensign magazine titled A Latter-day Father’s Guidebook compared fathers in the Book of Mormon (which Latter-day Saints testify is Another Testament of Jesus Christ, a volume of scripture comparable to the Holy Bible) to the fathers of today:
We live in a day when many fathers are working at a fevered pace to build material legacies of homes, boats, and bank accounts for their children. Exemplary Book of Mormon fathers, on the other hand, show us the importance of leaving legacies that cannot be cankered by rust.
What more could we hope for than to leave our children the spiritual tools, the self-control, and the faith to become witnesses and disciples of Jesus Christ? Lehi and his sons Nephi and Jacob, Jacob and his son Enos, King Benjamin and his three sons, Mosiah and his four sons, Alma and his sons, Helaman and his sons Lehi and Nephi, and Mormon and his son Moroni all came to know the joys of discipleship and discipline.
The sons of righteous Book of Mormon fathers were grateful they had been taught in the “nurture and admonition of the Lord” (Enos 1:1), which led them to Jesus Christ” (A Latter-day Father’s Guidebook, Ensign, Feb 1995, 15.)
A Humble Prayer for All Fathers
The remarks given by Gordon B. Hinckley, the 15th President and Prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, brings a fitting close to this treatise in the form of a humble prayer for all fathers. He once said,
God bless you, dear fathers. May He bless you with wisdom and judgment, with understanding, with self-discipline and self-control, with faith and kindness and love. And may He bless the sons and daughters who have come into your homes, that yours may be a fortifying, strengthening, guiding hand as they walk the treacherous path of life. As the years pass—and they will pass ever so quickly—may you know that “peace… which passeth all understanding” (Philippians 4:7) as you look upon your sons and daughters, who likewise have known that sacred and wonderful peace. Such is my humble prayer, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, amen (Great Shall Be the Peace of Thy Children, Ensign, Nov 2000, 50.)
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