Of Father Abraham's Many Sons

Father Abraham had many sons

And many sons had Father Abraham
And I am one of them
And so are you
So let's all praise the Lord.


This cute little song has been rattling through my head lately. Coupled with a set of increasingly kooky body movements, it has captured the imagination of Christian Sunday School children for generations. Besides being a lot of crazy physical fun, it conveys a spiritual sense of "we're all in this together" that builds Christian brotherhood and sisterhood among baby believers. 


Which is good and proper.


But in truth, that song isn't just about Christians. 


Father Abraham's sons include the brotherhood and sisterhood of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. We are all Father Abraham's children. 

Sacrifice of Isaac by his Father Abraham. Yikes.

That innocent little song reminds us that God's plan is for us to live in peace.


Yes, I know there are differences between these three faiths. Some are small, some are huge and seemingly insurmountable differences.  And generally speaking, our respective cultures reinforce those mutually exclusive differences and admonish its followers to remember that everyone cannot be right.


I acknowledge and respect those differences. And only God knows the truth about His plan for His creation.  But I'm much more interested in what brings us together. 


As Jew, Muslim or Christian, we all love the one and only true God, who goes by many names but cares for each of us with a deep abiding love, and has a plan for our salvation.


In response to that love, we all express our faith and share our lives with other believers by: 

• gathering together
• praising God
• reading sacred texts
• encouraging each other 
• praying together
• offering gifts
• fasting for deepened spirituality
• caring for the poor
• building community together.

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All three faiths love the same God.  The God of Abraham.

All three faiths believe in one true God. 
All three faiths trust in this loving, wise, constant God to guide us and help us live our lives according to His wisdom.


These common bonds matter to me.  Although I practice my Christian faith with a full heart, and understand God's love for us through the image of the cross, I appreciate the fact that had I been born to a different family, in another part of the world, I might be keeping kosher or wearing hijab at this very moment.  Accepting other people's way of expressing faith in our shared God does not mean I compromise my own principles;  it means that I am trying to love as God does.


So I choose to love all of Abraham's children. 
And I am one of them. And so are you. So let's all praise the Lord.  



{It's with a certain sense of irony that I offer this video of the Father Abraham song being sung by United States Marines. I'm not making a statement about Christian domination, military control over religion, or American colonialism. I just think it's a really fun version of the song.}