The Reverend - Usage

Usage

In traditional and formal English usage, both British and American, it is still considered incorrect to drop the definite article, the, before Reverend. When the style is used within a sentence, the begins with a lower-case letter. Common abbreviations for Reverend are Rev., Revd, and Rev'd. Except in formal situations, it is common in American usage not to use the when Reverend is used as a title or form of address (i.e., before a name).

The Reverend is traditionally used as an adjectival form with first names (or initials) and surname (e.g. The Reverend John Smith or The Reverend J.F. Smith); The Reverend Father Smith or The Reverend Mr Smith are correct though now old-fashioned uses. Use of the prefix with the surname alone (The Reverend Smith) is considered a solecism in traditional usage: it would be as irregular as calling the person in question "The Well-Respected Smith". In some countries, especially Britain, Anglican clergy are acceptably addressed by the title of their office, such as Vicar, Rector, or Archdeacon.

In the 20th and 21st centuries it has been increasingly common for reverend to be used as a noun and for clergy to be referred to as being either a reverend or the reverend (I talked to the reverend about the wedding service.) or to be addressed as Reverend or, for example, Reverend Smith or the Reverend Smith. This has traditionally been considered grammatically incorrect on the basis that it is equivalent to referring to a judge as being an honorable or an adult man as being a mister.

Although it is not a formally correct use of the term, Reverend is sometimes used alone, without a name, as a reference to a member of the clergy and treated as a normal English noun requiring a definite or indefinite article (e.g. We spoke to the Reverend yesterday.). It is never correct, though, to form the plural Reverends. Some dictionaries, however, do place the noun rather than the adjective as the word's principal form, owing to an increasing use of the word as a noun among people with no religious background or knowledge of traditional styles of ecclesiastical address. When several clergy are referred to, they are often styled individually (e.g. The Reverend John Smith and the Reverend Henry Brown); but in a list of clergy, The Revv is sometimes put before the list of names, especially in the Roman Catholic Church in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

In some churches, especially Protestant churches in the United States, ordained ministers are often addressed as Pastor (as in Pastor John or Pastor Smith). Some other titles, such as Canon, may be used together with the Christian name or both names, for example, Canon John or Canon John Smith. However, Pastor is more correct in some churches when the minister in question is the head of a church or congregation.

Male Christian priests are usually addressed as Father or, for example, as Father John or Father Smith. However, in official correspondence, such priests are not normally referred to as Father John, Father Smith, or Father John Smith, but as The Reverend John Smith. Father as a title is used for Roman Catholic, Orthodox, and Old Catholic priests, and for many priests of the Anglican and Lutheran churches.

Some female Anglican or Old Catholic priests use the style The Reverend Mother and are addressed as Mother.