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[Telstar]

If I remember correctly, Nuns are only called Mother when they hold a higher position of authority, like the Mother Superior, who is the leader of the Order, or the prioress of a convent, or the one who oversees the Postulants (those who are in the first stage of becoming a Nun) is also called “Mother” by the Postulants. Otherwise, they are all referred to as Sister. (I think Mother Angelica is/was the head of her particular convent.)

 

[Telstar]

There are many monasteries still around. Indeed I ran a quick search for Ohio where your profile says you are. I didn’t find any Catholic monasteries high on the search results but I did find several EO monasteries straight away.
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I found a Benedictine Monastery listed in Cleveland. Saint Andrew Abbey. There’s a video that you can watch, to see what the Monks do at the Abbey as well as in the surrounding community, to give you an idea of ‘what Monks do’.

 

[Telstar]

Ah, I see. I really don’t know very much about Eastern Orthodoxy. I was just referring to Roman Catholic’s practices and titles.

 

[Telstar]

The apostles referred to themselves as spiritual fathers, not Fathers. My dad is a father, not a Father. In scripture, father is only capitalized when speaking about God, unless it starts a sentence. I believe the context is Jesus telling us not to take on titles in hopes of being honored by men. He spends the previous half-dozen verses criticizing pharisees for making public displays of piety and seeking recognition.

The title of “Father” is not something that Priests take on themselves for their own ‘glory’ in the eyes of the people. Does a doctor take on his title just to boost his own ego, or does it designate his level of education and authority in his field of medicine? A Priest actually has the equivalent of education in his field, as a doctor does. But, it’s also a tradition that goes all the way back to the “Early Church Fathers”. ‘Fathers’ are the men who have certain authority over their families. They are still the “spiritual fathers” of the people.

It was a title of distinction and affection that was given to those early Priests, the leaders and teachers of the people in their local churches (families), that designated their position as one of authority over the rest of the flock, and their qualifications for performing certain duties in the churches that only they could perform (Baptisms, consecrating the Holy Eucharist, etc.). It was given to them out of love for what they did for the people. They were the early Disciples. The higher authorities were the Bishops that were equal in authority to the Apostles, who were sometimes the heads over more than one church in a specific area. They were also referred to as the ‘Fathers’ of their communities of people. It’s a designation of their particular authority over others.

In a Protestant church, are all of the members equal in their authority in the church? Can anyone that feels like it get up and preach a sermon at any time, or is there only one person that’s designated to lead the rest of the people, and preach? Do they refer to the minister by any kind of title? Don’t they sometimes just call him “Reverend”? Does anyone have a problem showing them respect for being the head of their church? It’s the same thing, only different.

 

[jmcrae]

jmcrae;8787329:

Nuns are not female priests; they are female monks. Monks are called “brother,” so nuns are called “sister.”

Priests are called “Father” because they are the head of the parish “family.”

Thanks for clarifying. Are there still monks around? I always thought monasteries were like schools or seminaries and monks were teachers, which were replaced by modern schools and universities.

Yes, there are still monasteries around. Most larger cities have them. The biggest one in my city is a Franciscan monastery, just outside the city limits.

There are also Carmelite monks in my city, but I don’t know if they have an actual monastery, or just a house. At one time we had some Jesuits, as well, but I think they were living at the Bishop’s residence; I don’t think they had a monastery. We have a Pallotine community here, as well - they live at the Rectory of St. Cecilia’s.

 

[Swiss_Guy]

Ok, I’ve found this thead, so here’s my question:

What makes something infallible by the ordinary universal magisterium? Do all the bishops have to agree on something about faith and morals to make it infallible, or just a majority? I know that sometimes a thing that is part of the ordinary magisterium can become part of the ordinary universal magisterium after some development and learning, but how do you know what is infallible (universal) and what isn’t (ordinary)? Like if all of the bishops agree about something at one time, and then they don’t another time, is it still infallible because at one time they all agreed?