About the Book
“Dear Mama God - Thank you for the earth and all living things.”
So begins this warm, wonder-filled prayer of gratitude from a child addressed to Mama God.
Combining stunning illustrations with simple yet profound prayers, Dear Mama God is the perfect children's book to introduce children (and their adults) to the liberating and heart-expanding world of referring to the divine in feminine form. The text thanks Mama God for trees for birds to nest in, hula hoops for dogs to jump through, paper to draw on, cozy fires, loving hearts, and the universe that is our home. The illustrations invite readers into a warm, comforting presence.
Written by Daneen Akers (Holy Troublemakers & Unconventional Saints), and illustrated by the award-willing illustrator, Gillian Gamble (When God Made the World), children and adults alike will be drawn into a diverse, imaginative, and luminous world full of color, possibility, and hope.
The author is is part of a broader movement to incorporate explicitly feminine God-language into Christian practice. Though it’s not a new movement—for decades, womanist and feminist scholars have pointed out the harm done by male-centric God talk—it’s vibrant and growing, with many new additions to the literature, such as A Women’s Lectionary for the Whole Church series by Rev. Wil Gafney; God Is a Black Woman by Dr. Christena Cleveland; Thy Queendom Come by Rev. Kyndall Rae Rothaus, God Is by Dr. Mallory Wyckoff; and another beautiful picture book, Mother God, by Rev. Teresa Kim Pecinovsky. (The book is especially grounded in the scholarship of Dr. Rev. Wil Gafney, whose licensed translation of Job 33:4 with the feminine grammar restored opens the book.)
Feminine images and language for God are found in the Jewish and Christian scriptures, which include references to God as a compassionate mother, a midwife, and a woman in labor. She bakes bread to feed the hungry, shelters Her baby chicks, and nurses Her babies. Julian of Norwich, a 14th-century female theologian and saint wrote: “As truly as God is our Father, so truly God is our Mother.” In the 20th century, Pope John Paul I echoed Julian when he said, “God is our Father; even more God is our Mother.”
“Our texts and traditions have named and imagined divinity as ‘He’ for so often and for so long that many of us have started to think God is actually masculine and male. This has enormous implications for how children of all genders grow up imagining (or not) their essence as part of the Image of God,” Akers says. “Masculine language for God contributes to a world in which women and girls remain marginalized and seen as less than, and the mothering and feminine qualities in all genders are undervalued. Feminine God-language is liberating for us all.”
The author found praying with her children Mama God and Mother God to be a healing and transformative spiritual practice. This new picture book is a way to share this expansive and life-affirming concept that God is also a mother with others.
Praise for Dear Mama God:
"This precious book takes us on a journey of prayer with the heart of a child. These prayers are the prayers of a child inviting us into a tender, thankful relationship with Mama God. The heart of this richly illustrated world is the Tree of Life representing God, connecting in the book with those who hold and read and pray it." - The Rev. Wil Gafney, author of Womanist Midrash and A Women’s Lectionary for the Whole Church
“It's not often that an illustrated children's book qualifies as theologically significant. And it's also rare for a book to be as spiritually moving for adults as it is for kids. But Dear Mama God is amazing on both counts, in addition to everything else you'd expect from a stellar children's book. I couldn't be more enthusiastic. - Brian D. McLaren, author of Do I Stay Christian? and Faith After Doubt
“This is one of the most beautiful children’s books I’ve ever encountered. Daneen Akers has given us a gift, one that not only helps us imagine a bigger, more complete picture of God but one that will bring hope and healing to many of its readers. And the illustrations are a masterpiece. With each spread, Gillian Gamble presents a new and breathtaking view of God. And y’all, She is awesome and holy and full of love and light.” - Matthew Paul Turner, NYT-bestselling author of What is God Like? (with Rachel Held Evans), I Am God's Dream, and When God Made You
"God is called by many names in the Sikh tradition -- Mother, Father, Beloved -- and so this book lands in my heart! Mama God awakens us to the wonder of being alive and nurtured by the earth. Each page gives us beautiful art and gentle words that orient a child (and their grown up) to limitless gratitude. I can’t wait to read this book with my children!” - Valarie Kaur, author of See No Stranger and founder of the Revolutionary Love Project
“What a beautiful gift for our kids - and for the kid still within all of us. With inclusive language and gorgeous illustrations, this book models profound theological truth with beauty, strength, gratitude, and invitation.”- Sarah Bessey, NYT bestseller “A Rhythm of Prayer” and “Jesus Feminist”
“When God is woman, girls see the divine in themselves and boys embrace their feminine traits as holy. Mama God loves each kid as they are, and this book invites them into the safety of Her presence.” - Cindy Wang Brandt, author of You Are Revolutionary and Parenting Forward
“Filled with a Great Goodness, Dear Mama God is wondrous, tender, and deeply nourishing. It calls us back to our origins—a womb—and invites us to the roots of gratitude and belonging. With heart-filled, stunning artwork, and the loving words of a prayerful child, this much-needed book is poised to become a household favorite.” - Jasmin Pittman Morrell, co-editor of The Porch magazine
“Dear Mama God is a gratitude-filled dance with a child in the form of a prayer. The lyrical text pairs perfectly with glowing illustrations. This book is a wondrous celebration of Mama God’s love for us.” - Rev. Teresa Kim Pecinovsky, author of Mother God
“I want my sons and daughter to grow up trusting in God’s motherly love for them. I want them to know this, not only intellectually, but in their hearts. Written with a simplicity and beauty that few prayer books for children manage and illustrated with breathtaking whimsy and beauty, Dear Mama God is an absolute treasure. It’ll be my go-to gift for new mothers and graduates alike. This book is manna for the journey.” - Rev. Traci Smith, Author of Faithful Families
“Dear Mama God will shock and thrill you if, like me, you were brought up with highly masculinized Christian interpretations of God. There’s nothing scandalous here, though: the thrill comes from discovering the utter simplicity and naturalness of addressing the Eternal One as Mama…My favorite image is the Tree that holds and shelters—a rich symbol of the Mother who is our home.” - Ruth Goring, author-illustrator of Picturing God
“This is a book my soul needed. In addition to reminding me of God’s abundant, gender-full love, it reminded me how much in this world there is to celebrate and be grateful for. So many of the kids in my life will be getting copies of this.” - Sandhya Jha, author of Liberating Love
“Dear Mama God invites children off all ages into the mystery that is God’s indwelling presence. With imaginative words and spirit filled images we are invited to join our prayers with this one to God who is our mother. - Rev. Dr. Elizabeth F. Caldwell, editor of Growing in God’s Love Storybook Bible
"Would that every child grow up with an image of God as comforting, as loving, and as generous as the Mama God who shines so whimsically through the pages of this beautiful book. The world would be a different place if so. I bought a copy for my daughters immediately, and I know we will be reading it again and again. - Rev. Kyndall Rae Rothaus, author of Thy Queendom Come and Executive Director of Nevertheless She Preached
About the Author
Daneen Akers loves the gloaming, the time of day when it’s starting to grow dark and there’s magic in the air. She’s also very fond of books, walks in the woods, songs around a campfire, snuggles with her daughters, and large pots of hot beverages enjoyed with friends. She is also the author of Holy Troublemakers & Unconventional Saints, a middle-grades anthology of original portraits and profiles of people of diverse faiths who have worked for more love, justice, and kindness in their corner of the world. She lives near Asheville, North Carolina, with her family. Most mornings, she’s woken up by an enthusiastic Carolina Wren outside her window.
About the Illustrator
Gilliam Gamble wakes up in a building that used to be a stable. She was born in Scotland and grew up right where the city meets the countryside in Dundee. She loves hot mugs of tea, big questions, swimming in the sea and Scottish lochs (lakes), and adventuring. She’s the illustrator of several books. Gillian now lives in northern England with her two curly-haired daughters, chickens, guinea pigs, dogs, and eight other people who all live on the same site as an intergenerational community.
About the Publisher
Watchfire Media is the publisher of both Dear Mama God and Holy Troublemakers & Unconventional Saints. Watchfire Media is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) public charity. Watchfire produces life-affirming books for the spiritually unconventional who have children in their lives whom they want to be comfortable with the big questions of faith and meaning, awed by the beauty of the world and her people, and ultimately committed to love, kindness, courage, and justice. We are dedicated to good stories that help us envision the world that could be. You can help support Watchfire Media’s work with a tax-deduction donation here.