Catholics often followed the usage of England, where until late in the 19th century, Catholic priests were called “mister.” For example, Father Mapple, who gave a famous sermon to sailors in the novel “Moby Dick” (1850), was a Methodist. During the 17th and 18th centuries and even into the 19th, some American Protestants regularly called their clergy “father” and “mother” without any qualms. There was no difficulty about calling spiritual leaders “father” until the mid-19th century. The more recent history of this usage and the backlash against it is illuminating. Early teachers were fathers of the Church and the revered spiritual guides of that generation were known as 'Desert Fathers.' The spiritual use of father was not questioned in the Church for centuries, and Jesus’ words were never invoked to cause question or concern about the practice.

Paul was unaware of any prohibition of the spiritual use of the title 'father,' telling the Corinthians: “I became your father in Christ Jesus through the Gospel” (1 Corinthians 4:15), and speaking of his relationship with Timothy said that “as a child with a father he has served along with me in the cause of the Gospel.” (Philippians 2:22) The injunction of Jesus to “call no man father” was against using titles for self-glorification, not against using them if they indicate roles of service. The reason for the disapproval of the use of the title “ f ather” for religious leaders was political, not biblical.

Who are the priests in the bible