spiritual leader - a leader in religious or sacred affairs

Nestorius - Syrian who was a Christian bishop and Patriarch of Constantinople in the early fifth century; one of the major heresies concerning the doctrine of Christ was named after him (died in 451)

head of household - the head of a household or family or tribe

adult male, man - an adult male person (as opposed to a woman); "there were two women and six men on the bus"

antediluvian, antediluvian patriarch - any of the early patriarchs who lived prior to the Deluge

forefather, sire, father - the founder of a family; "keep the faith of our forefathers"

Jacob - (Old Testament) son of Isaac; brother of Esau; father of the twelve patriarchs of Israel; Jacob wrestled with God and forced God to bless him, so God gave Jacob the new name of Israel (meaning `one who has been strong against God')

Simeon - (Old Testament) the 2nd son of Jacob and one of the 12 patriarchs of Israel

Abraham, Ibrahim - the first of the Old Testament patriarchs and the father of Isaac; according to Genesis, God promised to give Abraham's family (the Hebrews) the land of Canaan (the Promised Land); God tested Abraham by asking him to sacrifice his son; "Judaism, Christianity, and Islam each has a special claim on Abraham"

Benjamin - (Old Testament) the youngest and best-loved son of Jacob and Rachel and one of the twelve forebears of the tribes of Israel

Isaac - (Old Testament) the second patriarch; son of Abraham and Sarah who was offered by Abraham as a sacrifice to God; father of Jacob and Esau

Ishmael - (Old Testament) the son of Abraham who was cast out after the birth of Isaac; considered the forebear of 12 Arabian tribes

Issachar - (Old Testament) a son of Jacob and a forebear of one of the tribes of Israel

Joseph - (Old Testament) the 11th son of Jacob and one of the 12 patriarchs of Israel; Jacob gave Joseph a coat of many colors, which made his brothers jealous and they sold him into slavery in Egypt

Judah - (Old Testament) the fourth son of Jacob who was forebear of one of the tribes of Israel; one of his descendants was to be the Messiah

Methuselah - (Old Testament) a patriarch (grandfather of Noah) who is said to have lived 969 years

Noah - the Hebrew patriarch who saved himself and his family and the animals by building an ark in which they survived 40 days and 40 nights of rain; the story of Noah and the flood is told in the Book of Genesis

Reuben - (Old Testment) a son of Jacob and forefather of one of the tribes of Israel

graybeard, greybeard, old man, Methuselah - a man who is very old