Divine Roles

"Parents have a sacred duty to rear their children in love and righteousness, to provide for their physical and spiritual needs, to teach them to love and serve one another, to observe the commandments of God and to be law-abiding citizens wherever they live."

Today in class we talked about roles of family members. We didn't really specifically talk about a father and mother's role, but roles in general that were played in a family. The quote above is from The Family: A Proclamation to the World, and it describes one of the many roles that parents have in the family. It mainly talks about raising children in righteousness. In class we talked about many different roles of a family such as leadership, protection, provider, peacemaker, caregiver, and teacher. We discussed who played which role in our families. As with everything in marriage, parents should share all responsibilities and be equal partners, but another quote from the proclamation states the main roles designed for mothers and fathers.

"By divine design, fathers are to preside over their families in love and righteousness and are responsible to provide the necessities of life and protection for their families. Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children."

Many of the roles we talked about in class war generally shared by both parents or maybe leaning a little toward one parent. But I think that is a key concept that parents need to share responsibilities equally and discuss what is going on in their family by "taking stock". Taking a step back and looking at where the family is at and what they can do better to bring them closer together and to Christ. We were all given talents, which contribute to the roles we will play in our families. These roles were divinely appointed and they are all equally important. Children need to be nurtured just as much as they need to be provided for or protected. No one should feel that they have a less important role than someone else. Families are successful because they all work together playing a role, which in turn will contribute to a bigger picture.