Last updated on June 16th, 2025 at 04:01 am
This year’s celebration in over 110 countries of Father’s Day—Día del Padre, Dia do Pai, Festa del Papà, Fête des Pères, Hari Bapa, Sul y Tadau, Vatertag, Farsdag, or otherwise—is an urgent reminder that fathers are, in the words of Dr. David Popenoe, “unique and irreplaceable” and “bring positive benefits to their children that no other person is as likely to bring”—and do so in a complementary capacity. “Fathers are family founders,” stated President Ronald Reagan, and “play an indispensable role in forming vital, whole families,” which “are the bedrock of our Nation’s strength.”
The Roman philosopher Cicero also spoke of this interconnectedness: “The first bond of society is marriage; next, children; and then the family.” A modern philosopher, Ambassador Michael Novak, added, “The roles of a father and a mother, and of children with respect to them, is the absolutely critical center of social force.”
All of this is eloquently distilled in Article 16(3) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: “The family is the natural and fundamental group unit of society”—showing, said Professor Richard Wilkins, that the family is “derived from the natural union of a man and a woman.” It is no late development but began “In the beginning” when the Creator inscribed the sacred marital bond into the very fabric of His created order. “At Creation’s pinnacle,” says Professor Jenet Jacob Erickson, “we are presented with the differentiation of male and female, wholly distinct and complementary, each bearing the image of God, imago Dei.”
For a father to abandon his unique role is to deprive his children of what Professor Bradford Wilcox calls “the distinct, positive impact of a good dad,” thereby wreaking havoc not only on his family but on society itself. So widespread is this havoc today, says Cassie Carstens, that “if it were classified as a disease, fatherlessness would be an epidemic.” Dr. Wade Horn has referred to this “collapse of fatherhood” as our “greatest social tragedy” and “the most disturbing and consequential social trend of our time.”
On this Father’s Day as we pay tribute to the service and sacrifice of faithful fathers, we also plead with absent fathers to come home to what President Reagan called the “joys of fatherhood.” And to all fathers everywhere, we repeat more of his words, spoken to America but articulating universal truths.
Fathers play a vital role in providing sustenance, protection, and guidance for their families and the community at large. We owe them our high esteem, for their presence and gift of love as role models, providers, and defenders.
Fatherhood is all about the things that matter most—about love and new life, about trust and responsibility, about faithfulness to a family and to a calling. Fathers must be many things, but most of all they must be selfless.
Through acts of courage, of selflessness, and of love, fathers have lifted, inspired, and blessed the lives of those around them. It is fathers who have such a major role in giving their children guidance, leadership and direction and teaching them integrity, truth, and humility.
Children will forever remember the father who is devoted to his family, anxious for their welfare, proud of their successes, and whose example is a beacon to them. He has left them with memories that have enriched and molded their lives.
Every father rises to his tallest stature as he selflessly cares for his family, his wife, and his children. Our finest fathers have come to know what Martin Buber meant when he wrote that our treasure is hidden beneath the hearth of our own home.
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