Dear Parishioners,

Happy Father’s Day! Thank you to all the good fathers out there for being the men they are. In our society, fatherhood is often undermined. In any sitcom, the father is safely shown to be lazy or an idiot or a moral reprobate. While I am not against having less than ideal characters in fiction, it gets old when it seems like these are the only types of fathers being presented over, and over again. What this reaction to fatherhood shows, though, is a deep desire for people to have good fathers since jokes are the most funny when they point out some deeper truth. The deeper truth here is that deep down we prefer for our fathers to be as loving and good as they can be and the comedy comes from these false examples of fatherhood not living up to that standard.

The importance of fatherhood is easily shown through statistics. When fathers are absent from the home, the children are four times more likely to live in poverty, seven times more likely to become pregnant as a teenager, more likely to have behavioral problems, more likely to face abuse (and neglect), more likely to abuse substances, more likely to go to prison and more likely to commit crime. Over and over again it is shown that fathers are essential to the healthy development of the child. (Or at least some other positive male role model in the household.) Some people might be offended by this because it sounds like it is downplaying the importance of motherhood and there are plenty of hard-working single mothers out there and through no fault of their own are in this situation and really doing a great job. However, that would be a heroic circumstance that should not be the norm. That is why the church and society should encourage men to be responsible for the children they bring into this world and the best way to do that is to have healthy and committed marriages. Our nation is suffering from a crisis of fatherhood with 43% of children being raise in fatherless homes. We need engaged and responsible fathers more than ever.

So, to all you fathers who kept your commitments and raised your children well, thank you! To all of you who sacrificed for the good of your children and put their well-being and well-being of your spouse before your own, thank you! As a man, you are called to sacrifice and to be the model of prayer and virtue in the home. I pray that you may continue to answer that vocation with an open heart a heart that is given by God.

God bless!

Fr. Carter