Clergy is a generic term used to refer to the formal religious leadership within some religions. A clergyman, clergywoman, clergyperson, churchman or cleric is a member of the clergy, especially one who is a priest, preacher, pastor, or other religious professional. Clergy have different functions in different religious traditions. They may lead certain rituals, for example, or help in spreading religious doctrines and practices.
In Christianity, specific names and roles of clergy vary by denomonation, and there is a wide range of formal and informal clergy positions, including deacons, priests, bishops, preachers, pastors, and ministers. In Shia Islam, a religious leader is often known as an imam or ayatollah. In Jewish tradition, a religious leader is often a rabbi or hazzan (cantor).
Read more about Clergy: Etymology, Buddhism, Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Sikhism, Traditional Religions, Health Risks
Famous quotes containing the word clergy:
“I see and hear daily that you of the Clergy preach one against another, teach one contrary to another, inveigh one against another without charity or discretion. Some be too stiff in their old mumpsimus, others be too busy and curious in their new sumpsimus. Thus all men almost be in variety and discord.”
—Henry VIII (1491–1547)
“I never saw, heard, nor read, that the clergy were beloved in any nation where Christianity was the religion of the country. Nothing can render them popular, but some degree of persecution.”
—Jonathan Swift (1667–1745)
“To impose celibacy on such a large body as the clergy of the Catholic Church is not to forbid it to have wives but to order it to be content with the wives of others.”
—Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712–1778)