Spiritual Fatherhood: Men’s Retreat 2021

Grasp your true vocation as a man, which includes spiritual fatherhood. The grace of fatherhood is a pressing need when young children are in the home, but *all* men are called to be fathers. Fatherhood is intrinsic to our vocation as men, whether or not we have biological children ourselves. We're called to be confident in this grace and embrace it through both spiritual awareness and practical application.

The Book of Malachi includes this important prophecy: "He will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers." That's the last verse of the Old Testament. The promise fulfilled in the New Testament, where Jesus makes God known more emphatically as Father. All our fatherhood derives from the Fatherhood of God and points to him. The character of God as Father is most clearly illustrated in the Prodigal Son parable. That will be our starting point as we look at fatherhood as a vocation to give mercy, to bless, and to provide. All this is a vocation to encouragement. To fulfill this role, God will build you up and encourage you in your own vocation as a father.