The notion of God’s fatherhood and a related spirituality of divine filiation (son or daughter-ship in Christ) are foundational in Christian scripture and tradition, beginning with Christ’s own instruction to pray to God as “our Father” (Matthew 6:9-13). In contemporary North America, however, concern that patriarchal notions of God can contribute to the oppression of women leads some scholars to downplay the idea of God’s fatherhood as an optional metaphor. In addition, a perceived crisis of fatherhood in American culture can lend to fatherhood itself sometimes negative associations. As a result, for many American Christians today, the fatherhood of God and an embrace of their own divine adoption are no longer foundations of personal spirituality and prayer.

Can a spirituality of God’s fatherhood as the source of our divine adoption be fruitful for Christians today, and what might this look like? I will argue that Thomas Aquinas offers helpful insights into the meaning of God’s fatherhood that, far from supporting a narrative of oppression, underline God’s wise and loving plan of goodness for all his beloved children. Aquinas’s theology of God the Father has not been widely studied, although it grounds his spiritual teaching. He invites the Christian into bold and trusting filial prayer with Christ in the work of salvation, that glorifies the Father’s goodness.

This book will be based on a thorough study of primary and secondary scholarly sources, but will be accessible for a wider audience interested in learning more about the Christian tradition’s teaching on God’s fatherhood and the spirituality of divine adoption. I hope to advance the scholarly study of Aquinas’s spiritual theology while also offering intellectual and spiritual insights for those seeking to understand more fully what it means from the Christian perspective to live in today’s world as God the Father’s “beloved children” (Ephesians 5:1).