A celebration of super dads and men of heart!

We have a fun activity to celebrate your "Super" dad, followed by a liturgy written by Rev. Emmy Kegler to ground us in a celebration of the fathers in our midst and fathers in the history of our faith.

Super Dad
An activity for littles and creative bigs!
Use construction paper to create a “Super Dad” uniform: design your Dad Doll based on things that you love and are grateful for in your dad, your grandpa, your neighbor, your uncle…. All those who “dad” in your life!  

What are the qualities/words that you think of when you think of your dad? Now, use those qualities to design the uniform.

If your own dad is in the room, be sure to include him, because he might have some qualities of HIS dad that influence and support him too!

​When you’re done, snap a fun pic of the dads in the room with the Super Dad Doll and say a blessing/prayer of thanks together for dads. Have younger kids think of words that describe dads and do a “shout prayer” to shout out one-word prayers of gratitude. 

A Celebration of Men of Heart
Take a moment to meditate on this liturgy or read it together with those around you!
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One: On this day when across our country fathers and men are uplifted and celebrated, we join our voices both with those who grieve and those who rejoice, remembering the many fathers of faith who came before us. 
We remember every man who held his newborn child and found it to be the greatest gift and the hardest task of all. We celebrate with you. 
​All: May the God who bears new life in us inspire love in you.

One: We remember fathers who, like Jarius the synagogue leader, have sat beside the beds of children who were sick, and cried out to God on their behalf. We pray alongside you.
All: May the God who fathers each of us be a source of life for you.

One: We remember men who have sought to become fathers and yet, through many life circumstances, find themselves without children to care for. May you, like the Jewish leader Mordecai and the Ethiopean eununch, find that in your faithfulness to God you bear children of hope to the whole world.
All: May the God who fathers each of us be a source of life for you.

One: We grieve alongside men who, like David and Job, have buried their own children, and alongside men who, like Jacob, have lost their wives well before it seemed fair. We mourn with you.
All: May the God who fathers each of us be a source of life for you.

One: We remember children who face this day, whether for the first time or for the fiftieth time, without a beloved father. May you, like Joseph son of Jacob, know with confidence that your father’s life is honored and his legacies remembered. We mourn with you.
All: May the God who fathers each of us be a source of life for you.

One: We remember those who face this day in pain from fathers who did not celebrate and uplift the image of God in their children. We celebrate those who, like Esau the brother of Jacob and Joseph Jacob’s son, refuse to continue the cycle of manipulation and abuse, but instead choose to step into reconciliation and healing. We celebrate with you.
All: May the God who bears new life in us inspire love in you.

One: We remember and give thanks for men who, like Joseph the father of Jesus, have made a family through adoption and stepfatherhood. We celebrate with you.
All: May the God who bears new life in us inspire love in you.

One: We remember all those who have found freedom and new life in the difficult process of divorce. We celebrate with you.
All: May the God who bears new life in us inspire love in you.

One: We remember King David and the poets and prophets, who in their mourning and in their celebrating were unafraid to show the fullness of emotion. We celebrate with you.
All: May the God who bears new life in us inspire love in you.

One: We lift up all your children, O God, who have reflected, in ways large and small, your overwhelming compassion. Wherever we may be this day, in grief or joy, may we find ourselves turned towards You, whom Jesus spoke of as a wastefully extravagant father, lavishing us with joy and peace.
All: Amen.