Comments on: Hey, Apostle? Can you fill out that TPS report by Monday?

Question: Hey, Apostle? Can you fill out that TPS report by Monday?

Stewriffic — Fri, 28 Sep 2012 14:24:38 -0800

What US religion or religious sub-set uses the titles "Mother" and "Apostle?"

A friend of mine recently had a phone conversation with two women for work. They knew each other well and work together in rural North Carolina, US. The context was discussing a new educational program, but it doesn't matter much, just that it was a purely secular conversation. They called each other "Mother" and "Apostle" respectively. So one would say "Mother, what do you think about that?" and the other would respond, "Well, Apostle, I think that's a fine idea." Not "Mother Nancy" and "Apostle Elizabeth" just "Mother" and "Apostle." In fact at one point "Mother" said to my friend, "Apostle, who you call Elizabeth, will be taking on that role."

What gives? This is religious, right?

By: Sara C.

Sara C. — Fri, 28 Sep 2012 14:29:03 -0800

There are a lot of odd vaguely Pentecostal, Adventist, and Evangelical congregations that aren't part of any wider denomination which have strange traditions like this. Could they be part of something like that?

By: lovelygirl

lovelygirl — Fri, 28 Sep 2012 14:33:47 -0800

I've never heard someone refer to another person as "Apostle" but I have heard the term "Mother" used frequently among in AME (African Methodist Episocopal) churchgoers. There are probably a lot of AME churches in the south.

By: jaimystery

jaimystery — Fri, 28 Sep 2012 14:53:24 -0800

The Apostles of The Sacred Heart of Jesus?

By: blaneyphoto

blaneyphoto — Fri, 28 Sep 2012 15:15:42 -0800

This might be close.

By: easily confused

easily confused — Fri, 28 Sep 2012 15:23:41 -0800

Christian Scientists?

By: St. Alia of the Bunnies

St. Alia of the Bunnies — Fri, 28 Sep 2012 15:34:28 -0800

That sounds like any number of small African American churches here locally. And yes, we have quite a few AME churches in this part of the country.

I work for a florist and when these small churches send flowers a lot of times they sign the cards Apostle so and so and the congregation of such and such church.

I'm not sure but I believe these terms are part of African American church culture-a culture that is very very big on repect and on using terms of respect. For example, the pastor's wife will be called the first lady of the church.

By: The World Famous

The World Famous — Fri, 28 Sep 2012 15:36:30 -0800

Sounds like jokey faux-military/spy nicknames from college or somesuch to me, particularly with the sentence "Apostle, who you call Elizabeth." Apostle used like that as a proper noun rather than a title doesn't strike me as religious so much as Mission Impossible-esque.

By: Sidhedevil

Sidhedevil — Fri, 28 Sep 2012 20:21:40 -0800

The Apostles of the Sacred Heart of Jesus call each other "Sister", not "Apostle", just like every other Roman Catholic order of nuns, so it's not them.

By: loriginedumonde

loriginedumonde — Fri, 28 Sep 2012 21:18:07 -0800

My family is Pentecostal, my grandmother was both Mother and State Mother of the church. It's a hierarchal station like a cardinal or bishop. I can't remember anyone being called an Apostle.

By: 1adam12

1adam12 — Sat, 29 Sep 2012 04:16:40 -0800

Small unaffiliated African-American churches in my old neighborhood used naming schemes like these.

By: Tom-B

Tom-B — Sun, 30 Sep 2012 06:45:10 -0800

Candomblé uses "mother", but I've never heard them use "apostle".