Don't call me Father
Soon after I was ordained Priest in December 1976 I had business cards made which identified me as Father Michael Povey. I relished that “Father” bit! No longer.
The whole business of names and titles for the ordained often causes confusion or merriment. ‘Tis all very silly stuff, except when it is taken seriously. And I was once a “serious Father”!
A wee bit of history.
The old appellation for a Minister in the Church of England was “Clerk in Holy Orders”. He (and it was always “he”) was a “Clerk” because he was literate. He was in Holy Orders since he was ordained.
There were also un-ordained “lay Clerks” - often the only literate man in the parish, who could therefore lead the congregational responses in the Liturgy.
Ordained Clerks became known as “Clerics” (the word is the same).
I am a Cleric. When with my sister and brother Priests we are Clerics - but we are never “Clergy” “Clergy” is a collective noun. We should speak of “the Clergy”.
(But tell that to the Marines! I am frequently asked “are you Clergy?”).
Strange too, that the English word “Cleric” - quite historic and appropriate for Church of England Ministers, is now almost only applied to leaders in Islam, as in “Muslim Clerics”.
“The Reverend” is an honorific not a title.
Other positions have their own honourifics. So we speak speak of a Judge as “The Honourable Judge Felicity Perkins”, but we would never think of greeting her as “Honourable”, or say that she is “an Honourable”. Similarly, I am not a “Reverend”.
A bit more about those honorifics later.
In the Episcopal/Anglican ordained world there are two sets of nouns.
Some state what we are, others describe what we do.
What we are: We are Deacons, Priests and Bishops by virtue of ordination.
So we are Deacons, Priests or Bishops even if we leave parish or diocesan ministry to open a bakery, or to retire. Those words have to do with “being” and not with “doing”.
What we do: This is described by a bewildering array of words.
Vicars, Rectors or Priests-in-charge, are most often Priests, but sometimes retired Bishops who have the “cure” or care of a local congregation. (Hence the word “Curate” - one who has care),
(If you ask me nicely, I’ll tell you the historic and linguistic different between Vicar and Rector. But here is a clue - think of the meaning of the words “Director“ and “Vicarious“).
Deans are clerics who are either
(1) The chief ordained priests/ministers of Cathedrals.
(2) Head honchos of Seminaries in the U.S.A. (in England they are called “Principals).
(3) Parish ministers/priests who have been appointed by the Bishop to have some additional oversight over other congregations in a local area.
Archdeacons are clerics who have been appointed by the Bishop to assume delegated responsibilities within the Diocese. They are members of Diocesan Staffs.
Archbishops are Bishops who have either
(1) Honorary leadership of a regional group of Dioceses (this is especially true in Canada, Australia and parts of Africa), or
(2) Leadership of an entire Church in a Country or a Region e.g. The Church in Wales, or the Church in Nigeria, or The Province of the Indian Ocean.
These latter Archbishops are known as Primates, for they have a Primacy of Honour (not necessarily or always of authority) in their Church.
Our wonderful Episcopal Church, reflecting an egalitarianism of earlier days, does not have an Archbishop. Our Primate is known as the Presiding Bishop. (And she is great!!!)
Back to those dreadful honourifics.
Priests are The Reverend.
Deans are The Very Reverend.
Archdeacons are The Venerable.
Bishops are The Right Reverend.
Archbishops/Primates are The Most Reverend.
At one time I thought that these titles and honourifics were of the greatest importance. Now I think that they are a crock. What the hell do they have to do with Jesus’ call to unconditional love? What the hell do they have to do with our call to “do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with our God.
And that’s one reason why I dropped and discouraged the “Father Michael” bit. I came to believe that it had more to do with my desire for status in the Church, rather than with my call to service.
(And it seemed so odd and even wrong that I would be called “Father Michael” whilst my sister Priest would be called “Molly”).
So I prefer the more gentle “Pastor”. Even better is the biblical “Brother” (or “Sister”).
And if I had my druthers we’d take a leaf out of the Quaker book and call each other “Friend”. (See John 15:15)
The whole business of names and titles for the ordained often causes confusion or merriment. ‘Tis all very silly stuff, except when it is taken seriously. And I was once a “serious Father”!
A wee bit of history.
The old appellation for a Minister in the Church of England was “Clerk in Holy Orders”. He (and it was always “he”) was a “Clerk” because he was literate. He was in Holy Orders since he was ordained.
There were also un-ordained “lay Clerks” - often the only literate man in the parish, who could therefore lead the congregational responses in the Liturgy.
Ordained Clerks became known as “Clerics” (the word is the same).
I am a Cleric. When with my sister and brother Priests we are Clerics - but we are never “Clergy” “Clergy” is a collective noun. We should speak of “the Clergy”.
(But tell that to the Marines! I am frequently asked “are you Clergy?”).
Strange too, that the English word “Cleric” - quite historic and appropriate for Church of England Ministers, is now almost only applied to leaders in Islam, as in “Muslim Clerics”.
“The Reverend” is an honorific not a title.
Other positions have their own honourifics. So we speak speak of a Judge as “The Honourable Judge Felicity Perkins”, but we would never think of greeting her as “Honourable”, or say that she is “an Honourable”. Similarly, I am not a “Reverend”.
A bit more about those honorifics later.
In the Episcopal/Anglican ordained world there are two sets of nouns.
Some state what we are, others describe what we do.
What we are: We are Deacons, Priests and Bishops by virtue of ordination.
So we are Deacons, Priests or Bishops even if we leave parish or diocesan ministry to open a bakery, or to retire. Those words have to do with “being” and not with “doing”.
What we do: This is described by a bewildering array of words.
Vicars, Rectors or Priests-in-charge, are most often Priests, but sometimes retired Bishops who have the “cure” or care of a local congregation. (Hence the word “Curate” - one who has care),
(If you ask me nicely, I’ll tell you the historic and linguistic different between Vicar and Rector. But here is a clue - think of the meaning of the words “Director“ and “Vicarious“).
Deans are clerics who are either
(1) The chief ordained priests/ministers of Cathedrals.
(2) Head honchos of Seminaries in the U.S.A. (in England they are called “Principals).
(3) Parish ministers/priests who have been appointed by the Bishop to have some additional oversight over other congregations in a local area.
Archdeacons are clerics who have been appointed by the Bishop to assume delegated responsibilities within the Diocese. They are members of Diocesan Staffs.
Archbishops are Bishops who have either
(1) Honorary leadership of a regional group of Dioceses (this is especially true in Canada, Australia and parts of Africa), or
(2) Leadership of an entire Church in a Country or a Region e.g. The Church in Wales, or the Church in Nigeria, or The Province of the Indian Ocean.
These latter Archbishops are known as Primates, for they have a Primacy of Honour (not necessarily or always of authority) in their Church.
Our wonderful Episcopal Church, reflecting an egalitarianism of earlier days, does not have an Archbishop. Our Primate is known as the Presiding Bishop. (And she is great!!!)
Back to those dreadful honourifics.
Priests are The Reverend.
Deans are The Very Reverend.
Archdeacons are The Venerable.
Bishops are The Right Reverend.
Archbishops/Primates are The Most Reverend.
At one time I thought that these titles and honourifics were of the greatest importance. Now I think that they are a crock. What the hell do they have to do with Jesus’ call to unconditional love? What the hell do they have to do with our call to “do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with our God.
And that’s one reason why I dropped and discouraged the “Father Michael” bit. I came to believe that it had more to do with my desire for status in the Church, rather than with my call to service.
(And it seemed so odd and even wrong that I would be called “Father Michael” whilst my sister Priest would be called “Molly”).
So I prefer the more gentle “Pastor”. Even better is the biblical “Brother” (or “Sister”).
And if I had my druthers we’d take a leaf out of the Quaker book and call each other “Friend”. (See John 15:15)
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