Just to address that "Father" part....
"So it was not you who sent me here, but God; and he has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house and ruler over all the land of Egypt" (Gen. 45:8).
"I was a father to the poor, and I searched out the cause of him whom I did not know" (Job 29:16)
"In that day I will call my servant Eliakim, the son of Hilkiah . . . and I will clothe him with [a] robe, and will bind [a] girdle on him, and will commit . . . authority to his hand; and he shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the house of Judah" (Is. 22:20–21).
"Elisha saw this and cried out, “My father! My father! The chariots and horsemen of Israel!” And Elisha saw him no more. Then he took hold of his garment and tore it in two." (2 Kings 2:12)
" To this he replied: “Brothers and fathers, listen to me! The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham while he was still in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Harran." (Acts 7:2)
"Not only that, but Rebekah’s children were conceived at the same time by our father Isaac." (Romans 9:10)
"I do not write this to make you ashamed, but to admonish you as my beloved children. For though you have countless guides in Christ, you do not have many fathers. For I became your father in Christ Jesus through the gospel" (1 Cor. 4:14–15).
"I am writing to you, fathers,
because you know him who is from the beginning.
I am writing to you, young men,
because you have overcome the evil one.
I write to you, dear children,
because you know the Father.
I write to you, fathers,
because you know him who is from the beginning.
I write to you, young men,
because you are strong,
and the word of God lives in you,
and you have overcome the evil one." (1 John 2:13–14)
That's just a few specific examples of people referred to as "father" in the Scriptures. I guess St. Stephen the Protomartyr, St. Paul, St. John the Evangelist, Job, and St. Elisha should be condemned for their unbiblical act of calling someone "father".
Not only that, if we look at instances where people refer to others as children and assume the title of father, well then I guess St. Peter is out, and St. Paul and St. John still haven't learned their lesson either!
"Therefore I sent to you Timothy, my beloved and faithful child in the Lord, to remind you of my ways in Christ" (1 Cor. 4:17); "To Timothy, my true child in the faith: grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord" (1 Tim. 1:2); "To Timothy, my beloved child: Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord" (2 Tim. 1:2).
"This charge I commit to you, Timothy, my son, in accordance with the prophetic utterances which pointed to you, that inspired by them you may wage the good warfare" (1 Tim 1:18); "You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus" (2 Tim. 2:1); "But Timothy’s worth you know, how as a son with a father he has served with me in the gospel" (Phil. 2:22).
"To Titus, my true child in a common faith: grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior" (Titus 1:4); "I appeal to you for my child, Onesimus, whose father I have become in my imprisonment" (Philem. 10).
"She who is at Babylon, who is likewise chosen, sends you greetings; and so does my son Mark" (1 Pet. 5:13).
"Here for the third time I am ready to come to you. And I will not be a burden, for I seek not what is yours but you; for children ought not to lay up for their parents, but parents for their children" (2 Cor. 12:14); and, "My little children, with whom I am again in travail until Christ be formed in you!" (Gal. 4:19).
"My little children, I am writing this to you so that you may not sin; but if any one does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous" (1 John 2:1); "No greater joy can I have than this, to hear that my children follow the truth" (3 John 4).
So we can assume then by your interpretation, that all these men from the Scriptures are doomed because they either called people "father" or referred to themselves as such. OR, we could understand that Our Lord was speaking in hyperbole as He was known to do from time to time. Pointing out the hypocrisy of the Pharisees claiming the title of father without acknowledging that all fatherhood originates from the Father in Heaven.
Catholics and Orthodox Christians follow the examples set down in Scripture by the Apostles. Priests become the spiritual fathers of their parishes, helping us grow closer to Christ and always acknowledging that their spiritual fatherhood to us only is because it comes through God's authority.
"So it was not you who sent me here, but God; and he has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house and ruler over all the land of Egypt" (Gen. 45:8).
"I was a father to the poor, and I searched out the cause of him whom I did not know" (Job 29:16)
"In that day I will call my servant Eliakim, the son of Hilkiah . . . and I will clothe him with [a] robe, and will bind [a] girdle on him, and will commit . . . authority to his hand; and he shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the house of Judah" (Is. 22:20–21).
"Elisha saw this and cried out, “My father! My father! The chariots and horsemen of Israel!” And Elisha saw him no more. Then he took hold of his garment and tore it in two." (2 Kings 2:12)
" To this he replied: “Brothers and fathers, listen to me! The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham while he was still in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Harran." (Acts 7:2)
"Not only that, but Rebekah’s children were conceived at the same time by our father Isaac." (Romans 9:10)
"I do not write this to make you ashamed, but to admonish you as my beloved children. For though you have countless guides in Christ, you do not have many fathers. For I became your father in Christ Jesus through the gospel" (1 Cor. 4:14–15).
"I am writing to you, fathers,
because you know him who is from the beginning.
I am writing to you, young men,
because you have overcome the evil one.
I write to you, dear children,
because you know the Father.
I write to you, fathers,
because you know him who is from the beginning.
I write to you, young men,
because you are strong,
and the word of God lives in you,
and you have overcome the evil one." (1 John 2:13–14)
That's just a few specific examples of people referred to as "father" in the Scriptures. I guess St. Stephen the Protomartyr, St. Paul, St. John the Evangelist, Job, and St. Elisha should be condemned for their unbiblical act of calling someone "father".
Not only that, if we look at instances where people refer to others as children and assume the title of father, well then I guess St. Peter is out, and St. Paul and St. John still haven't learned their lesson either!
"Therefore I sent to you Timothy, my beloved and faithful child in the Lord, to remind you of my ways in Christ" (1 Cor. 4:17); "To Timothy, my true child in the faith: grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord" (1 Tim. 1:2); "To Timothy, my beloved child: Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord" (2 Tim. 1:2).
"This charge I commit to you, Timothy, my son, in accordance with the prophetic utterances which pointed to you, that inspired by them you may wage the good warfare" (1 Tim 1:18); "You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus" (2 Tim. 2:1); "But Timothy’s worth you know, how as a son with a father he has served with me in the gospel" (Phil. 2:22).
"To Titus, my true child in a common faith: grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior" (Titus 1:4); "I appeal to you for my child, Onesimus, whose father I have become in my imprisonment" (Philem. 10).
"She who is at Babylon, who is likewise chosen, sends you greetings; and so does my son Mark" (1 Pet. 5:13).
"Here for the third time I am ready to come to you. And I will not be a burden, for I seek not what is yours but you; for children ought not to lay up for their parents, but parents for their children" (2 Cor. 12:14); and, "My little children, with whom I am again in travail until Christ be formed in you!" (Gal. 4:19).
"My little children, I am writing this to you so that you may not sin; but if any one does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous" (1 John 2:1); "No greater joy can I have than this, to hear that my children follow the truth" (3 John 4).
So we can assume then by your interpretation, that all these men from the Scriptures are doomed because they either called people "father" or referred to themselves as such. OR, we could understand that Our Lord was speaking in hyperbole as He was known to do from time to time. Pointing out the hypocrisy of the Pharisees claiming the title of father without acknowledging that all fatherhood originates from the Father in Heaven.
Catholics and Orthodox Christians follow the examples set down in Scripture by the Apostles. Priests become the spiritual fathers of their parishes, helping us grow closer to Christ and always acknowledging that their spiritual fatherhood to us only is because it comes through God's authority.
