The central theoretical argument of this study proposes that God reveals Himself to man through the biblically presented metaphor of Father, as portrayed by the Biblical covenants between God and man.
The primary aim of this research is to describe the Biblical attributes of God the Father as a foundation of fathering. In order to achieve this objective, the study aims to identify what Scripture revealed about the attributes of God as our Father. It also investigates the ancient patriarchal traditions pertaining fatherhood and delves into what contemporary Christian literature proposes about the important aspects of fathering. It also proposes that such revealed attributes can serve as a foundation for human parents (which include fathers) to better understand the important aspects that they need to consider in order to father their own children with greater consistency according to the image of their heavenly Father.
After delving into Scripture, the two relevant meta-theoretical fields of psychology and sociology were investigated to see what each respective field has put forth about the importance of a father who engages with his children in specific ways. An empirical research followed where participants answered open-ended questions that address their impressions about their own fathers or male role-models, God as their Father and what effect they think fathering has had on them. From there, the empirical research validated certain recurrent attributes which were also verified through a process of triangulation, what has been found in Scripture and the meta-theory about the important attributes of God as Father. The results of the interaction lead to a proposition of a model of pastoral foundation for fathering. / Thesis (Ph.D. (Pastoral))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2009.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:NWUBOLOKA1/oai:dspace.nwu.ac.za:10394/3629 |
| Date | January 2008 |
| Creators | Parker, Erika Iona |
| Publisher | North-West University |
| Source Sets | North-West University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
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