Reverend

I was having a discussion with a gentleman today that I found quite interesting. This man was almost violently annoyed by the usage of the title “Reverend” by some ministers. I was quite familiar with the particulars of his argument as I have heard it before and have even once shared the same viewpoint. I did not seek to disagree with him nor did I share with him my own views...for one I’ve learned to choose my battles and this was not important enough to me to debate; and I’ve also learned to allow people the freedom of their own convictions. After this exchange I felt compelled to share my conviction concerning this issue (or non-issue, as such) on my blog. I am not stuck on or controlled by titles, but I certainly don’t have anything against them so long as they are not abused.

Part and parcel to the argument against a preacher using the title “Reverend” is that no human should use Reverend with their name because the King James Version of the Bible says in Psalm 111:9, “...holy and reverend is his name.” While I cannot argue (nor would I attempt to) that Scripture does say that His name is reverend, an attentive perusal of this passage would immediately indicate that his passage does not preclude anyone from using this as a title, particularly since this is not referred to as His title. The Hebrew/Chaldee word for reverend here is “yare” and it takes on the form of an adjective giving us to know that this refers to an attribute and not a title or name (which incidentally would have to take the form of a noun). Therefore, this Scripture is saying that His name has the attribute of being “holy” and “reverend” bringing to man the responsibility of holding His name in high regard, respect, and fear. To deduce from this Scripture that no one should be called reverend totally removes this passage from it’s scriptural context and thereby eradicates its original purpose and meaning. So, to properly divide the word of truth and to put precept upon precept, line upon line, here a little and there a little (Isaiah 28:10) we cannot ignore the word “holy” in this passage. On many occasions Scripture has indicated that God’s people would be CALLED holy (Isaiah 4:3; 62:12; St. Luke 2:23; 1 Peter 1:15-16), so now it stands to reason that since both “holy” and “reverend” are grouped together in Psalm 111:9 that if we can be referred to as holy, we can also be referred to as reverend. We are called “holy” because of Who we represent (along with a representative lifestyle) therefore I, as a man of God, think it not robbery to be called “reverend” because of Who I represent.