Invisible Father Research Articles

Christ, Image of the Father. On the Lasting Importance of the Christology of Thomas Aquinas

AbstractThis contribution discusses the expression ‘Image of the Father’ as a case in point to Aquinas's approach of naming Christ: Christology and Trinitarian theology, as well as the discussion of analogical naming in divinis, need to be taken together. ‘Image’ and ‘Father’ are predicated differently of Christ and God the Father than of human beings. Moreover, God is ‘Father’ in a different way towards the Son than regarding human beings. Christ is the unique image of the Father: the invisible image of the invisible Father.

Child-Mothers and Invisible Fathers: The Paradox of "Precocious Maternity" and the Pervasiveness of Child Sexual Abuse in Nineteenth-Century America

Child-Mothers and Invisible Fathers: The Paradox of "Precocious Maternity" and the Pervasiveness of Child Sexual Abuse in Nineteenth-Century America

Origen i simvolizam u Liturgiji - učenje znamenitog Aleksandrijca o crkvenoj umetnosti

The present paper aims to examine the relation between Liturgy as a service which is imbued with symbolism (and all kinds of art) and one typically spiritual view of communion with God. How could we reconcile Christian spirituality and liturgical symbolism? What is the view of Origen about liturgical symbolism? There are some opinions in academic research connecting Origen with iconoclastic beliefs in the Church. According to these opinions, Origen's concept of absolutely incorporeal God and the irreconcilable relation between spiritual and physical substances had influence on the repudiation of icons in Church in later times. In general, Origen's concept of God, human being and salvation formed one specific context for the theological understanding of human salvation and communion with God. With regard to this presumption, we will try to analyze it through the following steps. At first, we try to define the concept of body and material reality in Origen's ontology, as well as to contrast it to soul and spirit, which are largely emphasized in all his exegetical and other reflections. The second step is to try to reconstruct insights of Origen about symbols and icons in Liturgy. There is no complete exposition on this topic in his writings, but implicitly there is a possibility to investigate his teaching about icon and symbols. Here we take into consideration the idea of Christ as the icon of the invisible Father. Further, Origen mentions the concept of icon when he speaks about the difference between corporeal and spiritual man.

Gender Socialization, Family Leadership, and the Invisible Father in Children’s Literature

Objective: This study examines the portrayals of mothers and fathers in children’s picture books read by millions of parents and children in their formative years. We investigate the extent to which these books present rigid parental stereotypes that misrepresent the potential of family leaders. Method: We performed a content analysis of 203 prominent children’s picture books from recent years to assess the appearances, activities, and emotions of mothers and fathers. Results: Rather than transcending narrow gender stereotypes, fathers in the most-read books continue to be underrepresented, relatively hands-off parents. Mothers are generally portrayed as emotional parents who complete traditional chores and nurture children. Conclusion: The gender socialization of children and parents via children’s books contributes to the notion that mothers and fathers cannot perform as equals in homes or workplaces. Representations of mothers and fathers differ substantially, with fathers playing a secondary role in parenting if they appear at all.

Cristo, fenomeno saturo, secondo Jean-Luc Marion

The four types of saturated phenomena, the event according to the quantity, the idol according to the quality, the flesh according to the relationship, and according to the modality, are all involved in the embodied in the Revelation of the christic Gestalt, as expressed by H.U. von Balthasar. Christ manifests himself as an event, as an idol (which causes glare), as the flesh (suffering and joyful) and as a face. Deepening the meaning of the keyword “saturated phenomenon” could be a great step forward to explore the specific hermeneutics of Jean-Luc Marion. Marion has always insisted that the saturated phenomenon comes by itself, without preparation and without prediction. The aspect that makes it so excessive is precisely the way it arrives, as a total surprise. The Crucifix, the Icon par excellence, saturates the expectations of every gaze and directs it towards an Other, as even in the moment of abandonment it refers to the invisible Father of whom it is the visible image. Unlike the reassuring relationship with the idol designed by the human gaze, the abandonment to faith is at first detachment of man from God, and then places him in a true relationship of communion with God.

The Ghost of the ‘Y’: Paternal DNA, Haunting and Genealogy

Based on a personal family history experience, in this paper, I consider the way in which genealogical DNA testing is revealing family secrets, in particular paternity secrets, which would previously have remained unknown via ‘traditional’ methods of genealogical research. Reasons for the displacement of these invisible fathers from the records are discussed, and the power of genealogical DNA testing to bring them into focus is examined. Such discoveries may disrupt and unsettle, causing people to think differently about the fathers and grandfathers with whom they have grown up or have believed to be part of their personal histories and, for some people, may challenge their sense of identity. Beyond personal identity issues, in this paper, I draw upon ideas about ‘ghost-work’ to suggest that these experiences have some of the features of hauntings and that the ghostly fathers who break through may speak to us about social realities and structures, beyond the confines of linear time.

Karl Popper about Totalitarianism: Ideas and Practices

The aim of this article is to present the abovementioned events in Ukraine showed how the understanding o f them and experiencing o f the particular crisis situation can lead to the conditions when people start protesting against the ongoing socio-economic and political changes. Certainly, cultural, ethnic and religious identities have considerable importance. The author shows that Karl Popper was a witness of birth, adoption and death o f the totalitarian states o f the twentieth century, based on fascism and communism. He, as a thoughtful and observant scientist, fundamentally and profoundly studied the essence of Plato’s totalitarianism in Charmides. The scientific principles and scrupulosity o f Karl Popper also manifested in the fact that he repeatedly revised his study Open Society and Its Enemies, which was published in 1945, during more than two decades. Present media, subordinated to the creators o f new concepts and meanings and to the invisible fathers of netocracy, have already captured many of the commanding heights o f public life. And the modern censorship is focused not on blocking some messages or content, but on the promotion o f such messages and meanings, which deprive the consumer from the ability to know what is happening in the banking sector and infrastructural spheres of public life. Values o f the consumer society, still being imposed to a mass society, today, do not meet the spirit o f time. Thus, the world is still in between the past and the future, because authoritarianism and totalitarianism remain unresolved phenomena and these phenomena are aggressive and disguise themselves actively, using media resources. It is evident that the ruling elite o f the Russian society has set out to restore the former empire.

Invisible fathers’ voices about the integrated programme implemented in mainstream child care centres in Hong Kong: implications for educational change

Studies on parental views and experiences of the integrated programme implemented in mainstream early childhood settings for children with disabilities are dominated by the perspectives of mothers and teaching personnel. Additionally, most of these studies are largely from Western countries. This hermeneutic phenomenological study attempts to document the personal views and experiences of Hong Kong Chinese fathers who are raising children with disabilities. A total of 24 fathers of children with disabilities currently studying in 12 mainstream child care centres (CCCs) with an integrated programme were interviewed twice. Results indicate that the fathers appreciated the rationales of the integrated education of their children’s integrated CCCs, which is the ideal programme for allowing the involvement of their children in the real world. Nevertheless, the fathers also experienced difficulties, frustrations and dissatisfaction after their children were admitted into the integrated CCCs. Policy and practice implications are also discussed.

Invisible fathers

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the experiences of five men participating in the Mellow Dads Parenting Programme delivered for the first time in an English Prison, in partnership with a neighbouring local authority. Design/methodology/approach – Interviews conducted before and after the programme were analysed through the perspective of a group of community-based peer researchers, former graduates of the community-based programme. The study prioritised the peer researchers’ “insider knowledge”, drawing on a transformative paradigm to illuminate the strengths and challenge the assumptions often held about fathers in the context of vulnerable families. Findings – Using a thematic framework, the research group found that the programme facilitators were fundamental in providing a safe and nurturing space within which participants could openly reflect and consider their past experiences whilst acquiring new skills. Participants reported changes in their understanding of themselves, their children and their perceptions of accessing parenting groups. The programme’s unique provision of weekly activity sessions without the presence of the children’s mothers enabled the participants to legitimise their role and parent in a way unavailable since their incarceration. The integrated approach to service delivery enabled practitioners from within the prison and the community to adopt a shared culture focused upon the whole family in the context of the ongoing incarceration of the father. Research limitations/implications – The findings detail the potential in local partnerships between organisations committed to strengthening family connections, in particular the need to reconsider the current policy of providing additional visits in order to strengthen family relationships. Originality/value – The unique partnership between the author and the community-based peer researchers illuminates an invaluable perspective when exploring the pilot of Mellow Dads, the findings of which have the potential to challenge the ways in which the fathering role is promoted and fulfilled within the prison system.

Child welfare workers' views of fathers in risk assessment and planned interventions, a comparison between English and Norwegian workers

AbstractIn a comparison of 53 child welfare workers' risk assessment based on a vignette case about a 9‐year‐old girl, less than one‐third of the child welfare workers in England and Norway, intended to work with fathers. Only 28% and 14%, respectively, suggested involving the stepfather, in spite that, the vignette said he lived with the girl and her mother. The invisible fathers in child welfare have been well documented, but fathers and stepfathers in particular, were surprisingly invisible in the Norwegian context, known for its strong focus on gender equality and institutionalized support for the father role. The child welfare workers seemed to prefer working with the mother and other professional agencies, rather than involving the father(s) and other family members. Although this may reflect the reality of families within child welfare, they are in contrast with the prevailing family ideology and practices in the society at large, both in England and in Norway.

The invisible father: How can child healthcare services help fathers to feel less alienated?

The invisible father : How can child healthcare services help fathers to feel less alienated?

The Good, The Bad, and the Invisible Father: A Phenomenological Study of Fatherhood in Men with Substance Use Disorder

Parental substance abuse undermines caregiving competency and increases the likelihood of abuse and neglect of children. Both research and clinical interventions focus disproportionally on maternal substance abuse, whereas the role of fathers with addictions is largely ignored. The study used a qualitative design to investigate fatherhood from the perspective of men with a substance addiction. Eight fathers in residential rehabilitation treatment programs participated in focus group discussions. Interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) was used to identify three figures of fatherhood: The good father, the bad father, and the invisible father. The three constructs are discussed in relation to Western trends and discourses of fathering and implications for childcare. Gender expectations and the father’s right to participate on equal terms as the mother in the child’s life are discussed against the notion of the best interest of the child. Conclusion: The drug-problem, gender expectations, couples conflicts, and professional practices related to child protection issues all influence these men’s active participation as fathers. The fathering role in at-risk populations and the issue of co-parenting needs more attention in research, clinical interventions, and service programs. Implications for clinical practice are discussed.

Newman, Vatican II, and the Triple Office

AbstractAlthough not directly quoted in the documents of Vatican II, Newman should be regarded as an ‘invisible Father’ of the Council. This is evident the Council Fathers’ recognition of the importance of the historical situation as the place for practicing theology, a recognition of ‘the signs of the times’. We encounter revelation as fact rather than a set of hand‐me‐down propositions. Both Newman and Vatican II appreciated the role that the whole community of the Church plays in the articulation of doctrine. Newman invoked the model of the priestly, prophetic and regal office conferred on the Church by her Lord to challenge the increasing polarization between teachers and taught in the church and the damaging centralism that ensued. In a similar way the Council wished to restore a fruitful interplay between periphery and centre by acknowledging the collegiality of the bishops, and calling for a full involvement of laity in the life of the Church.

Gender Role Stereotyping of Parents in Children?s Picture Books: The Invisible Father

Previous studies reveal the reinforcement of gender stereotypes by picture books children read during the formative years. In these books, boys tend to be portrayed as active leaders, and girls as passive followers. Women and girls are under-represented. Men often exhibit career skills, and women perform traditional tasks in the home. Even when careers are nontraditional, personality characteristics and other qualities and behaviors are often stereotypical. Previous researchers emphasized the narrowly defined roles of women and children in picture books. In this study, we focused on the representation of mothers and fathers, and examined whether men are stereotyped as relatively absent or inept parents. A content analysis of the gender roles exhibited in 200 prominent children’s picture books demonstrated that fathers are largely under-represented, and, when they do appear, they are withdrawn and ineffectual parents. Further research could establish whether seriously deficient models of fatherhood in children’s literature affect the incidence of present, caring fathers in society.

Beyond the Comedy and Tragedy of Authority: The Invisible Father in Plato's Republic

What follows is a reading of Plato's Republic in the light of Aristophanes' Clouds. More precisely, what is here offered is the bare outline of such a readinga set of preliminary notes that, by illuminating the inceptive stages of the Republic (especially book 1), constitutes a propaedeutic to the interpretation of the Platonic dialogue as a whole. Questions that one would typically be expected to raise in this context, questions regarding the relation of philosophy to poetry, the nexus between the Aristophanean and the Platonic Socrates, or Aristophanes' comedy in connection with the fate of the historical Socrates, will here remain unaddressed or will be touched upon only marginally (and obliquely). Far from accidental, this qualified

Book Review: Imposing Scope on Religion, the Invisible Father: Approaches to the Mystery of the Divinity

Book Review: Imposing Scope on Religion, the Invisible Father: Approaches to the Mystery of the Divinity

Book Review: The Invisible Father

Book Review: The Invisible Father

Fathers, daughters, and spiritual sisters: Marsha Norman's'night motherand Tennessee Williams'sthe Glass Menagerie

Tennessee Williams's Laura Wingfield and Marsha Norman's Jessie Cates are seen here as sisters in disguise. For both characters, their invisible fathers seem somewhat mythic and mystic figures who embody imaginative truth, leading to fulfilling liberation from a world with which each daughter is unequipped to deal. The father's function in both plays is perhaps more a function of his absence than of his maleness. His purity as a symbol, in other words, is preserved because he is not present in the flesh to disturb it.