Father

A father is the male parent of a child. Fathers may be categorised according to their biological, social or legal relationship with the child. Historically, the biological relationship paternity has been determinative of fatherhood. However, proof of paternity has been intrinsically problematic and so social rules often determined who would be regarded as a father e.g. the husband of the mother. This method of the determination of fatherhood has persisted since Roman times. The historical approach has been destabilised with the recent emergence of accurate scientific testing, particularly DNA testing. As a result, the law on fatherhood is undergoing rapid changes.

Religion

Father is applied to the first Person of the Blessed Trinity, according to the Christian religion. He is the provident creator; he begets God the Son and God the Holy Spirit from all eternity. Jesus called him "Abba," a familiar term in Aramaic which can be translated as "father" in modern English.

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Father is also the title given to Priests in the Roman Catholic and Orthodox Christian Churches, as well as several other denominations. Father is the regular form of address used when speaking to or referring to priests from these churches. Fundamentalist Protestants believe priests should not be called "Father" because of Mat 23:9 which is taken out of context to support this view.

Related Topics:
Priest - Roman Catholic - Orthodox Christian

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Catholic & Orthodox Christians give this title to their clergy because they believe that all Christian believers make up the Body of Christ (or the Church). They believe that the clergy who receive this title are spiritual fathers because as one is a member of the Body, so there are also "elders,", "rabbis," and other leaders. Father can be translated as an elder because it presumes that one has, because of age or study, wisdom and knowledge of the doctrines of the Church. St. Paul also refers to himself as having spiritually begotten his fellow Christians in Christ due to their "new birth" (or baptism) as in 1 Cor 2:15, 2 Tim 1:2, 2 Tim 2:1, 1 Tim 5:1, Titus 1:4, 1 Pet 1:18, 2 Pet 3:4, 1 Jn 2:13, etc.

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The title Father is also applied to certain influential early Christian figures:

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• Church Father
• Apostolic Fathers

See also godfather.

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