Victor R. Claveau, MJ
“Why do Catholics call priests ‘Father,’ when Jesus said: ‘Call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven?”
Catholics call priests ‘Father’ because the priest is the ordinary minister of baptism, which gives us the new birth of supernatural grace.[1]
Christ was not finding fault with the use of the terms ‘Rabbi’ or ‘Father’ in themselves, but was teaching us that God alone, the Father of us all, is the Source of all authority, and at the same time rebuking the Pharisees for their pride.[2] It is absurd to interpret our Lord’s words literally, for we have a perfect right to call our fathers and teachers by their just title. The early Christians never interpreted these words literally, for Saint Paul calls Timothy his son,[3] and he calls himself the spiritual father of those whom he converted.[4] ‘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.’[5] Saint Jerome tells us that the fourth century monks in Palestine and Egypt called one another ‘Father’.
In The Book of Judges, there is the story of Micah and a priest from Bethlehem. The priest was traveling and Micah asked the Levite to stay, saying, ‘Stay with me, and be to me a father and a priest, and I will give you ten pieces of silver a year, and a suit of apparel, and your living.’[6]Roman Catholics have a long-standing custom–tradition–to address their priests as “father”. Many Christians believe that this practice is in disagreement with the Word of God. Our Lord’s words in Mt: 23:8, were simply a strong way of saying, in the Hebrew style, that no earthly father must come before God, the one supreme Father of all, in a person’s allegiance. If this passage was meant to be taken literally, then we would all offend the Scripture when we use the word “father” to designate our birth father; and “teacher,” our instructors in school. The NT usually (63% of the time) uses “father” as a reference to God the Father. Mt., Lk, Jn, Acts, and 1 Jn. Account for 189 out of 252 occurrences with this meaning. The 2nd most common use refers to human fathers, both from Israel’s past and contemporary parents.[7]
[1]Jn 3:5.
[2] Mt 23:2-10.
[3] Phil 2:22; 1 Tim 1:2.
[4] 1 Cor 4:15.
[5] 1 Cor 4:15.
[6] Jud 17:10.
[7] See also: Acts 7:2, 22:1; Rom. 4: 16-17; 1 Cor. 4:14-15; 1 Tim. 1:2; Tit. 1:4; Heb. 12:7-9; Lk. 14:26; 1 Thess. 2:7; Philem. 10; 1 Jn 2:13.