Why do some of you call a preacher Father?

Question

When Jesus said, don't call anyone Father, except God

I don't know, we'll have to put it to a vote.

Maybe Father means great one at that time, and maybe he meant not to call someone great one, or think they are the great one.

Maybe no person on earth is supposed to be thought of a great one, but God.

But some church leaders seem to make themeselves look like a great one, and people think they are great, when the greatness should only belong to God.

Answer 1

I am starting to wonder a few things, myself, and maybe you can help me answer them:

Do Protestants not know how to use that wonderful little feature at the top of the page: a.k.a., the Search box? Because if they do, they would find that this very same question has been asked about a gagillion times here in R&S, and folks like Father K and Cristoiglesia have given great answers, full of details and supporting Scripture.

My second question follows from the first: assuming that Protestants *do* know about the Search function, are they too lazy to use it? Or are they simply incapable of understanding and/or accepting the answers that Catholics give about their own faith?

And finally, assuming that they both use the Search function and have read previous answers from Catholics, do they willfully trot out these old accusations as a way to bash Catholicism and yet still appear to be righteous and 'Christian?' Or are they merely blinded by the god of this world into serving as his puppet to further the divisions that already exist in Christendom?

Word to the wise: a little research will give you the answers to this and just about any other anti-Catholic accusation that you can think of. (Believe me, I don't think there's anything that we haven't been accused of here on R&S.) And then when you find what we've told you about our faith, try believing us, eh?

We belong to the Church, and I think we're probably a little better informed on what we believe and why we believe it than any information you can get from word of mouth or a Jack Chick tract. Thanks.

Answer 2

I hope you are not following a false protesting Protestant interpretation of Matthew 23:9. I asked this same question once, not assuming it was wrong to call priests "Father", but simply wanted to under- stand what it meant in relation to priests. I asked a Catholic seminarian, and this was his answer: "It's talking about the primacy of the relationship with the Father. Don't go to the protestant interpretation that you cannot call a priest Father or your own dad father."

Answer 3

Great answers already, but I'll try to make mine a bit shorter.

When we call a priest "father," we follow an ancient Christian tradition begun by St. Paul: "For though you have countless guides in Christ, you do not have many fathers. For I became your father in Christ Jesus through the gospel" (1 Cor. 4:14–15). The title "father" is appropriate for an actual spiritual father and teacher, like Fr. Joseph, who posted here.

When Jesus said, "Call no man father" (Matt. 23:9), he was using hyperbole (exaggeration to make a point) to warn us against self-promoters who were not real authorities, father figures, and teachers.

Jesus is criticizing false teachers who love "the place of honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues, and salutations in the market places, and being called ‘rabbi’ by men" (Matt. 23:6–7). False teachers don't deserve titles of status and prestige--which would certainly be true for preachers working for themselves or some human organization.

Protestants regularly apply the title "Reverend" to men who make a living in the ministry. Sometimes the title is deserved, but sometimes it rejects Jesus' teaching in Matt 23.

Some of these men make six-figure incomes, live in rent-free houses, and drive a late-model car provided by the local church. In their sermons, these "reverends" may avoid the tough message of the gospel to talk about positive thinking, material success, or other worldly messages.

Here's the point Jesus was making in Matt 23:9: Don't automatically accord titles of respect to self-promoters. Save them for the authentic fathers, teachers, and rabbis.

CDF

Answer 4

The tradition in the Catholic church has been to assign the title of Father to the priests. In the Christian churches the preacher is normally given the title of pastor.

Answer 5

I've never understood Protestant fixation with this, and have to wonder what Protestants call their own male parents...

"Hello male person who coincidentally contributed chromosomes to me, may I have the car keys?"

"Sure son, soon as you get back from that acid trip you're on!"

Jesus is simply making it clear to us that we have to consider God the Father our ultimate source of both parenting and teaching, and to not exalt men above God; he's not literally asking for the institutions of either human paternity, the Jewish rabbinate, or the Christian presbyterate to disappear.

You guys really need to learn to read between the lines.

Answer 6

The issue is can we call the priest or any one here on earth a father? Yes! As simple as that. Jesus said that do not call any one Father exept God. That is true and if some body wants to argue with that argue with that like everybody does I believed they have a problem. Jesus most of the time in His teaching gave an illustration like this and like his other parables that we cannot do it. We call everybody as a teacher, master, boss, rabbi and so on. If we do that we missing the point. The point is we cannot do it. We need Jesus for our salvation. You can call God even Mary like some religion and worshipping angels and idols made out of wood that it have eyes that can't see and ears that can't hear... The main point here is If Jesus live in you and you have a personal relationship with him that is all matter. Yes, you can stay were you are as your denamination but you need to grow in your faith by reading and studying your Bible. On the time you received Jesus in your heart that makes you a Christian and not joining the church membership or being baptized in the water or speaking in toungue. putting your faith in what Jesus did on the cross and that is Life, death, buried and resurrection of Jesus Christ will save us to eternal damnation.

Answer 7

One of the first times that a religious individual tried to show me that the Catholic Church was wrong was by pointing out that we call our priest ‘Father’ even though Christ Himself said not to call anyone by that name. In this article I shall try to explain why it is not against Christ to call our priests ‘father’.

I acknowledge that Jesus did say: “And give no man the name of father on earth: because one is your Father, who is in heaven ” (Mat 23:9). Was Jesus saying an all-encompassing statement? Did He leave any room for exceptions? This verse seems to indicate that the Catholic Church is wrong in calling Her priests ‘father’.

After being barraged with questions mostly to trick Jesus into saying something unscriptural, Jesus turned to the people who were following Him and said: “The scribes and the Pharisees have the authority of Moses; All things, then, which they give you orders to do, these do and keep: but do not take their works as your example, for they say and do not.” Jesus was condemning their actions for they may be teaching correctly but they were not doing what was taught…they were being hypocrites.

But Jesus also said in the next few verses: “But all their works they do as to be seen by men…and the things desired by them are the first places at feasts, and chief seats at Synagogues, and the words of respect in the market-places, and to be named by men, Teacher.” Jesus was denouncing their egos, he was telling everyone that these priests were in it for the fame and not for the Glory of God. And so, our Lord wanted to make sure that the people knew because he did not wish it to continue.

And so, in this context did Jesus say in Matt 23:8 : “But you may not be named Teacher: for one is your teacher, and you are all brothers. And give no man the name father on earth: because one is your Father, who is in heaven.” It seems as if Jesus was trying to condemn what the Pharisees and Saduccees were doing. They were, in effect, misusing the title of Father. It is this misuse that Jesus is condemning.

If Jesus was condemning all uses of the title father then surely His disciples would have understood it that way. But you can see many different instances where Jesus’ apostles use the title father. In the book of Acts St Stephen addresses the rabbis and his fellow jews as “Men, brothers and fathers, listen”(Acts 7:2). Also in Acts 4:25 we find Peter and John Glorifying God saying with one accord: “Sovereign Master, You are the One who has made heaven and earth and the sea and all things in them, Who, through the Holy Spirit, through the mouth of our father David Your servant, has said, ‘Why, did the Gentiles rage, and the peoples devise vain things?’” And once more in Acts we find the apostle Paul talking to the elders of Jerusalem saying: “Men, brothers and fathers, hear my defense which I now make to you.”



With these past verses we find that Peter, John, Paul and Stephen all use the title ‘father’. Would it surprise you that even Jesus himself used that title? He uses it when referring to Abraham in his parable of the suffering rich man. Being a parable Jesus is unrestrained in using any and all terms allowable to Him for describing this story and He still chooses to use the term ‘father’ when referring to the rich man by addressing Abraham in Luke 16:24: “…Father Abraham, have mercy on me…” and again in verse 30: “…No, Father Abraham; but if someone risen from the dead would go to them, they will repent.” If Jesus was making an all-encompassing statement when He said to call no man Father, then He either made a mistake (which I don’t believe) or He is not the perfect example of man (which I believe He is the perfect example to follow). Therefore, there is no other conclusion to come of this other than Jesus was denouncing the misuse of the title and not of the word itself. Anything else would deny the deity of Christ.

This little study brings us also the point that to take anything on its own, that is not to use the whole of the scriptures to compare what is said about a certain subject is to possibly bring you to some very wrong beliefs which Christ never intended. Some of what is said in one verse of scripture cannot be all-inclusive statements. It needs to be interpreted in light of other passages that refer to the same subject matter in order to have a clear picture of what the Word of God is trying to teach you.

God Bless
Robin

Answer 8

You ask why the Dalai Lama is called his holiness by followers?

Answer 9

In every church I have ever been in the preacher is addressed as Brother, Pastor or Mr. And, many call them by their first name- Bob, Joe, or Jim-whatever the case.

Answer 10

Father K - It seems to me that you are clearly using "eisegesis", as you put it. The scriptures at Matt 23:8 does not say "do not be called Rabbi OR teacher", it says Do not be called Rabbi, for one is your teacher, but you are all brothers. If you read further on, it clearly says not to exhult one's self and that we only have ONE leader, the Christ.

Every scripture quoted afterward is a "distraction" from the verses mentioned above, which POINT BLANK instructs us not to classify others as a leader, but instead - a brother.
The point the scripture is emphasizing is no man should exalt himself above the other. By calling one "father" or "rabbi", that is what one would be doing.