I attended a social function recently. I noticed that some attendees addressed the Catholic priest as 'Mr'. They quoted the verse that says call no one Father etc. Could you help me understand the reasoning behind our use of Father as a form of address of our priests?
The passage from Matthew about calling no one on earth your father, as with all scripture, needs to be carefully interpreted. Surely Jesus did not mean that we now have to start calling our parents by their first names. Rather, Jesus is reminding us that there is only one source of our being, our Father in heaven. Titles can be dangerous because they can make us forget this, and they can foster a spirit of superiority and pride. Given this warning, why do we address priests as father? Well, the priest acts in the person of Christ. This means the priest has the authority to act in the power and place of the person of Christ himself. Therefore, by calling a priest father, we are really showing reverence to Christ.
My dad had a doctorate in education but did not wish to be addressed as "Doctor." I think that you have given me a reason as to why.
ReplyDeleteI have noticed that sometimes when priest publish works for journals...or write books...they do not use Father, Msgr., Bishop or Rev., etc. Just their name with perhaps the abbreviation for the order -- it there is one.
I prayerfully thank you for your answer.
ReplyDeleteKB
I must confess to being unhappy with this one. The direct context of Jesus' tirade is specifically against using the title Father as an honorific for religious people. Since it is a (relatively) recent practice for this to be an automatic title for all priests, I would, if at all possible avoid it in everyday use - although for some reason I haven't unpicked (maybe the 'Sacerdos alter Christus' argument you propose?) I am always happy to use it in Confession.
ReplyDelete