Who should we call Father?

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big_guy144

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We all know that priests, bishops and popes are called, Father. I am not catholic, so i might be a little off, but for the most part, we can all agree that men do call the pope Holy Father. So here is the question, who should we call Father?

Well, if your faith is based on the Bible, then here is what Jesus said,
“And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven,” Matthew 23:9.

Not only that, but the only time the words Holy Father are in the Bible are when Jesus was praying to God,
“Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are,” John 17:11.
 
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big_guy144:
We all know that priests, bishops and popes are called, Father. I am not catholic, so i might be a little off, but for the most part, we can all agree that men do call the pope Holy Father. So here is the question, who should we call Father?

Well, if your faith is based on the Bible, then here is what Jesus said,
“And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven,” Matthew 23:9.

Not only that, but the only time the words Holy Father are in the Bible are when Jesus was praying to God,
“Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are,” John 17:11.
Click to expand...
Try this link www.catholic.com/library/Call_No_Man_Father.asp
 
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big_guy144:
We all know that priests, bishops and popes are called, Father. I am not catholic, so i might be a little off, but for the most part, we can all agree that men do call the pope Holy Father. So here is the question, who should we call Father?

Well, if your faith is based on the Bible, then here is what Jesus said,
“And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven,” Matthew 23:9.

Not only that, but the only time the words Holy Father are in the Bible are when Jesus was praying to God,
“Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are,” John 17:11.
Click to expand...
Hello,

If you read the whole verse in context you will see that Jesus is warning his diciples not to seek wordly honor or be like the Pharisees who were seeking prestige through what title they held. In the verses around Matthew 23:9 he warns his disciples not to call any man Master or Teacher either.

The idea of Christian leaders being viewed as spiritual fathers is expressed by Paul 1 Corinthians 4:15 *Even if you should have countless guides to Christ, yet you do not have many fathers, for I became your father in Christ Jesus through the gospel. *
 
in matthew 23:1–12, when jesus tells us to call no man “father” or “teacher”,He is using figurative language to emphasize that all legitimate authority and truth ultimately come from God. we cannot take these passages literally. otherwise, jesus would be contradicting Himself for repeating the 4th commandment,“honor your father and mother” (mt19:19), and referring to “father Abraham”(luke 16:24).:blessyou:
 
The question should be why do other faiths NOT call their spiritual leaders ‘father’…It’s all over the Bible. To throw out Matthew 23 and a)wrench it from its context and b)ignore the whole of Scripture in which that verse fits seamlessly, is to use Scripture for a purpose other than that which it is intended.
 
Check out James 2, Romans 4, Acts 7…Each of these calls Abraham our father. Romans 9 calls Isaac ‘father’.

In Luke 16:24, Jesus uses ‘father’ to describe Abraham. Was Jesus confused or does Matt 23 mean something other than the literal interpretation?

St. Stephen in Acts calls the Jewish Pharisees whom he was addressing ‘father’.

Hebrews 12 speaks to the fact that we have many earthly fathers and teachers whom we reverence precisely because they are in the ONE, TRUE Father.

Ephesians 3:14-15 makes this point clear. Paul says he ‘bows his knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ of whom all paternity/fatherhood in heaven and earth is named…’

What do you call your male parent?
 
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big_guy144:
Not only that, but the only time the words Holy Father are in the Bible are when Jesus was praying to God,
“Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are,” John 17:11.
Click to expand...
Stephen in Acts 7:2 and Paul in Acts 22:1 did not call men “fathers” in the same way that they called God “Father”.

Likewise, the Catholic Church doesn’t call the Pope “Holy Father” in the same way that it calls God “Holy Father”.
 
***Douay-Rheims Bible explains MT:23:9 ***
And call none your father upon earth; for one is your father, who is in heaven.

9* The meaning is that our Father in heaven is incomparably more to be regarded, than any father upon earth: and no master to be followed, who would lead us away from Christ. But this does not hinder but that we are by the law of God to have a due respect both for our parents and spiritual fathers, (1 Cor. 4. 23: 15,) and for our masters and teachers. *
 
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