Appropriateness of Addressing Priests as "Father" Theologically
The question of addressing clergy as "Father" turns on the interpretation of Matthew 23:9, where Jesus instructs, "call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven" [6]. This prohibition appears in a passage condemning the scribes and Pharisees for their love of titles and ecclesiastical honors. The interpretive challenge lies in determining whether Jesus forbids the literal use of the term or targets a specific attitude toward religious authority.
Biblical Usage of "Father" as a Title
Scripture itself applies "father" to figures beyond biological parentage. The term served as "a title of respect to a chief, ruler, or elder" in ancient Israel [1]. In Judges 18:19, the Danites invite a Levite to "be to us a father and a priest," explicitly linking the paternal title to priestly office [2]. The term also designated "any ancestor" and "the author or beginner of anything" [1], suggesting a semantic range broader than the nuclear family. Malachi 1:6 records God addressing priests with the expectation that "a son honors his father," implying a father-son dynamic between God and the priesthood [4].
The Matthean Prohibition
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown interprets Matthew 23:9 as targeting "that itch for ecclesiastical" distinction rather than abolishing all titles of "natural and civil distinction among men" [6]. To construe the verse as condemning "every title by which Church rulers may be distinguished from the flock" would be to condemn church governance itself, "against the whole strain of the New Testament and sound Christian judgment" [6]. John Gill similarly argues that Jesus does not "set aside all names and titles, of natural and civil distinction," but rejects titles used "to signify an authoritative power over men's consciences" [7]. Children may call biological parents "father," and those instrumental in conversion may rightly receive the designation as "spiritual fathers" [7].
The Levitical Precedent
Under the Mosaic covenant, the priesthood was "limited to the tribe of Levi, and to only one family of that tribe, the family of Aaron" [3]. God commanded that Aaron's sons be anointed "just as you anointed their father, so that they may also serve Me as priests" [5], establishing a hereditary priesthood where the paternal relationship carried liturgical significance. This biblical precedent complicates any absolute prohibition on priestly titles derived from familial language, since Scripture itself grounds priestly succession in fatherhood.
Sources
- Easton's Bible Dictionary “Easton's Bible Dictionary: Father — A name applied (1) to any ancestor (Deut. 1:11; 1 Kings 15:11; Matt. 3:9; 23:30, etc.); and (2) as a title of respect to a chief, ruler, or elder, etc. (Judg. 17:10; 18:19; 1 Sam. 10:12; 2 Kings 2:12; Matt. 23:9, etc.). (3) The author or beginner of anything is also so called; e.g., Jabal and Jubal (Gen. 4:20, 21; comp. Job 38:28). Applied to God (Ex. 4:22; Deut. 32:6; 2 Sam. 7:14; Ps. 89:27, 28, etc.). (1.) As denoting his covenant relation to the Jews (Jer. 31:9; Isa. 63:16; 64:8; John 8:41, etc.). (2.) Believers are called God's "sons" (John 1:12; Rom. 8:”
- Judges “They said to him, “Hold your peace, put your hand on your mouth, and go with us, and be to us a father and a priest. Is it better for you to be priest to the house of one man, or to be priest to a tribe and a family in Israel?” -- Judges 18:19”
- Easton's Bible Dictionary “Easton's Bible Dictionary: Priest — The Heb. kohen, Gr. hierus, Lat. sacerdos, always denote one who offers sacrifices. At first every man was his own priest, and presented his own sacrifices before God. Afterwards that office devolved on the head of the family, as in the cases of Noah (Gen. 8:20), Abraham (12:7; 13:4), Isaac (26:25), Jacob (31:54), and Job (Job 1:5). The name first occurs as applied to Melchizedek (Gen. 14:18). Under the Levitical arrangements the office of the priesthood was limited to the tribe of Levi, and to only one family of that tribe, the family of Aaron. Certain laws”
- Malachi ““A son honors his father, and a servant his master. If I am a father, then where is my honor? And if I am a master, where is the respect due me? Says Yahweh of Armies to you, priests, who despise my name. You say, ‘How have we despised your name?’ -- Malachi 1:6”
- Exodus “Exodus 40:15 (BSB) — Anoint them just as you anointed their father, so that they may also serve Me as priests. Their anointing will qualify them for a permanent priesthood throughout their generations.””
- Matthew (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on Matthew 23:9: And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven, &c.--To construe these injunctions into a condemnation of every title by which Church rulers may be distinguished from the flock which they rule, is virtually to condemn that rule itself; and accordingly the same persons do both--but against the whole strain of the New Testament and sound Christian judgment. But when we have guarded ourselves against these extremes, let us see to it that we retain the full spirit of this warning against that itch for ecclesiastical”
- Matthew (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on Matthew 23:9: And call no man your father upon the earth,.... Not but that children may, and should call their natural parents, fathers; and such who have been instrumental in the conversion of souls, may be rightly called by them their spiritual fathers; as servants and scholars also, may call those that are over them, and instruct them, their masters: our Lord does not mean, by any of these expressions, to set aside all names and titles, of natural and civil distinction among men, but only to reject all such names and titles, as are used to signify an authoritative power over me”