Gender of God
In Christian traditions with the concept of the Trinity, Jesus, who is male, is believed to be the physical manifestation of the pre-existent God the Son.
In the Hebrew and Christian Bible, God is usually described in male terms in biblical sources,[1] with female analogy in Genesis 1:26–27,[i][2] Psalm 123:2-3,[ii] and Luke 15:8–10;[iii] a mother in Deuteronomy 32:18,[iv] Isaiah 66:13,[v] Isaiah 49:15,[vi] Isaiah 42:14,[vii] Psalm 131:2;[viii] and a mother hen in Matthew 23:37[ix] and Luke 13:34,[x] although never directly referred to as being female.
[9][10] However, Classical western philosophy states that God should be referred to (in most contexts) as masculine by analogy; the reason being God's relationship with the world as begetter of the world and revelation (i.e. analogous to an active instead of receptive role in sexual intercourse).
[12][13] The Catechism of the Catholic Church, Book 239, states that God is called "Father", while his love for man may also be depicted as motherhood.
[16][17] LDS Church members also believe that God the Father is married to a divine woman, referred to as "Heavenly Mother.
[20] These texts were particularly significant when Christians were debating whether the New Testament teaches that the Holy Spirit is a fully divine person, or some kind of "force."
LDS believers do not pray to the Heavenly Mother,[23] as God is the one who hears and answers prayers.
[24] However, those who view the Heavenly Mother as part of the Godhead risk excommunication,[25] even though the LDS website claims that they honor her Godhood.
In ancient and medieval Indian mythology, each masculine deva of the Hindu pantheon is partnered with a feminine who is often a devi.
The first word of the Rigveda is the name Agni, the god of fire, to whom many of the vedic hymns are addressed, along with Indra the warrior.
This creator is identified with Brahma (not to be confused with Brahman, the first cause), born of Vishnu's navel, in later scriptures.
"[34] They include goddesses of water (Āpaḥ) and dawn (Uṣas), and the complementary pairing of Father Heaven and Mother Earth.
[34] However, they are all "subservient to the abstract, but active positive 'force of truth' [Ṛta]...which pervades the universe and all actions of the gods and humans.
In some Hindu philosophical traditions, God is depersonalized as the quality-less Nirguna Brahman, the fundamental life force of the universe.
Hinduism, especially of the Samkhya school, views the creation of the cosmos as the result of the play of two radically distinct principles: the feminine matter (Prakṛti) and the masculine spirit (Purusha).
Printed as a heading for the Guru Granth, and for each of its major divisions, is the Mul Mantra, a short summary description of God, in Punjabi.
The Yogi, the Primal Lord, sits in the Realm of Absolute Stillness (state free of mind's wanderings or Phurne).
The godly beings and the Yogic masters seek the Sanctuary of this True Lord.However, the Guru Granth Sahib consistently refers to God as "He" and "Father" (with some exceptions), typically because the Guru Granth Sahib was written in north Indian Indo-Aryan languages (mixture of Punjabi and Sant Bhasha, Sanskrit with influences of Persian) which have no neutral gender.
[40] The essay was first presented in the spring of 1978 as a keynote address for the "Great Goddess Re-emerging" conference at the University of California, Santa Cruz.
