Priesthood and Deacons
What is the priest called?
In a Coptic Orthodox parish, the priest is usually called Abouna, an Arabic word meaning our father. People may also say Father followed by his name. The title names the priest's ordained fatherhood in the Church.
A priest is ordained through the bishop to serve the Holy Mysteries, especially the Eucharist, and to shepherd the faithful through teaching, confession, absolution, blessing, prayer, and pastoral care. Calling him Abouna keeps that ministry close to the language of a spiritual household.
Abouna And Spiritual Fatherhood
The title is pastoral before it is ceremonial. A priest is called father because he is entrusted with a fatherly ministry: he teaches the faith, calls the people to repentance, guards reverence around the altar
This fatherhood is received through ordination and lived inside the Church's order. The priest serves under his bishop, according to the faith and worship of the Church, for the salvation and healing of the people entrusted to him.
For though you might have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet you do not have many fathers.
Priesthood In The Church's Order
The priest receives a real ministry, but its source is Christ. Pope Shenouda's teaching on priesthood emphasizes that ordained priesthood is a calling, a mission, and a service given through the Church. The priest's fatherhood is therefore accountable, sacramental, and pastoral.
In the Liturgy, Abouna offers the appointed prayers, serves the altar, distributes Communion, and blesses the people. Outside the Liturgy, he hears confession, teaches, visits, counsels, prays, and helps the parish live as the household of God.
How To Address A Priest
If you are unsure what to say, Abouna is safe and ordinary in a Coptic parish. Father is also understood. If several priests are present, people may say Abouna followed by the priest's name.
The more important matter is approaching him with respect and choosing a proper time, especially when the question touches confession, Communion, conversion, marriage, or serious spiritual struggle. The title should remind the heart to pray for the priest and to seek healing through the life of the Church.
- Ranks of Clergymen, SUSCopts Deacons. Overview of bishops, priests, and deacons within the ordained service of the Church.
- Priesthood, Coptic Orthodox Patriarchate / COEPA. Pope Shenouda III's teaching on the ordained priesthood, its calling, authority, duties, and place in the Church.
- Rituals of the Sacraments, Servants Preparation Program, SUSCopts. Servants-prep lesson on the rites of Baptism, Chrismation, Eucharist, Repentance and Confession, Unction, Matrimony, and Priesthood.
Orthodox: Right worship and right belief, naming the Church's received apostolic faith and the life of worship that preserves it.
Abouna: A common Coptic way to address a priest, meaning our father, because priestly service is pastoral and fatherly within the life of the Church.
Bishop: A successor in the apostolic ministry who shepherds the Church, ordains clergy, guards the faith, and presides in the unity of the local Church.
Mysteries: The Orthodox name for the sacraments, calling attention to God's grace given through visible rites such as Baptism, Chrismation, Confession, and the Eucharist.
Eucharist: A Greek word meaning thanksgiving. In Orthodox worship it names the sacrament in which bread and wine become the Body and Blood of Christ.
Confession: The sacrament of repentance in which a person confesses sins before God in the presence of the priest and receives absolution and guidance.
Absolution: The priestly prayer of forgiveness and release, prayed by the authority Christ gave His Church for repentance and reconciliation.
Altar: The holy table in the sanctuary where the Eucharistic gifts are offered and consecrated, treated with reverence as the center of liturgical worship.