Efforts to reconceptualize God as nonbinary or gender-neutral are not just a theological dispute—they carry deep social implications, according to a new essay published in The Federalist. The piece, which draws heavily on Peter Kreeft’s new book Every Word in the Lord’s Prayer, argues that denying God’s fatherhood inadvertently undermines the importance of human fathers, with consequences for children and society at large.
The essay, written by a Federalist contributor, zeroes in on recent statements by Texas state Rep. James Talarico, the Democratic nominee for the Senate, who has declared God is “nonbinary” and referred to the divine as “Holy Mystery.” Talarico’s comments reflect a broader trend among some self-identifying Christians who argue that “they/them” are appropriate pronouns for God. Denominations such as the Episcopal Church (USA) and the United Church of Christ now permit liturgies that avoid masculine references to God, and some feminist theologians pray exclusively to a feminine deity.
The author acknowledges that, in a strictly religious sense, the impulse is understandable—God is spirit and incorporeal, neither male nor female. But the essay contends that in a political context, such efforts are less about sophisticated theology and more about promoting a particular view of women’s rights. Regardless of motive, the author argues, abandoning the title “Father” for God is misfounded and self-defeating.
Biblical Evidence for ‘Father’
The essay points to Scripture, noting that Jesus called God “Father” more than 150 times across the four Gospels—a fact highlighted in Kreeft’s book. “And if that was good enough for Jesus, it had better be good enough for you,” Kreeft writes. The author argues that Jesus’ use of “Father” was not sexist, given that Jesus treated women with dignity and gave them important roles in his ministry. Instead, the word “Father” is meant to direct believers to something eternally relevant about approaching the divine.
Kreeft’s book offers a long list of qualities that civilizations have historically associated with good fatherhood: trustworthiness, admirability, protection, gentle encouragement, love, identity, provision, and discipline. “When a father abandons his children, he teaches them that that’s the way life is; that that’s the nature of reality and therefore also the nature of God,” Kreeft writes.
The Social Cost of Fatherlessness
The essay cites sobering statistics. Approximately 25 percent of American children live without a biological, step, or adoptive father in the home. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that about 40 percent of U.S. births occur outside marriage, meaning many children’s relationships with their biological fathers are tenuous from the start. Adding to that, 40 percent of marriages end in divorce, creating what the essay calls a “recipe for societal chaos.”
Kreeft is quoted as saying: “The disastrous consequences of that lack of good father are so spectacular, so scientifically provable, and so socially destructive in our present culture that only willful ignorance fueled by destructive and dishonest ideology can account for the fact that they are not widely admitted and have become politically incorrect.”
The author argues that this fatherless reality helps explain why so many Americans are either rejecting God or redefining Him in ways that dissociate him from fatherhood. If fathers are absent or abusive, why would anyone want to worship a divine being described in such terms? But the essay warns that repudiating God as Father doesn’t solve the problem—it compounds it.
Human Need for Fathers
The piece insists that humans are “hardwired for fathers.” Drawing on a common analogy, the author suggests that a bad experience with something—whether exercise or relationships—doesn’t mean the thing is inherently bad. Growth often involves recognizing that the person who hurt us was a deviation, not the norm.
The essay concludes that denying God’s fatherhood, whether out of a misplaced affinity for diversity or out of pain from our own broken relationships with our fathers, only further disconnects us from the fact that we all need fathers. The data, the author says, is overwhelming: children without father figures perform worse academically, have more behavior problems, and cost taxpayers billions of dollars in support programs.
“When we reject God as father, we are not only rejecting who He is, but what we need,” the author writes. “That feeling of freedom from authority and ‘patriarchal norms’ soon descends into a deeper sense of alienation and brokenness.”
The essay urges readers to pray “Our Father,” not only because God is Father, but because doing so reminds us that fathers have a profound and permanent impact on who we are.
Source: thefederalist.com — https://thefederalist.com/2026/08/17/denying-gods-fatherhood-denies-fathers/