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priest
priest. The word ‘priest’ is etymologically a contraction of ‘presbyter’ (Gk. πρεσβύτερος), but the traditional English versions of the NT render πρεσβύτερος by ‘elder’ and keep ‘priest’ and ‘priesthood’ for the purely sacerdotal terms ἰ̑ερεύς and ἰ̑εράτευμα (Lat. sacerdos and sacerdotium). By the end of the Old English period ‘priest’ had become the current word alike for ‘presbyter’ and ‘sacerdos’ and so an ambiguous term.
The idea and institution of priesthood are found in almost all the great religions, usually connected with the concept of sacrifice. According to the OT the priesthood before the age of Moses was patriarchal, but Moses was ordered to consecrate Aaron and his sons ‘to minister in the priest's office’ (Exod. 28: 1); later priests were held to be descendants of Aaron, but it is likely that the reality was very different. The importance of the priesthood, and especially of the High Priest, increased with the enhanced position of the Temple in later Judaism. His position as mediator between God and man came to be the predominant idea of the Jewish priesthood in the time of Christ. In the NT the idea of Christ as High Priest finds clear expression in Heb. The idea of priesthood as belonging to the Christian ministry was a gradual development arising from a sacrificial understanding of the Eucharist and based on OT ideas of priesthood. The term ‘priest’ does not appear to have been applied to Christian ministers until the end of the 2nd cent., and then the term was commonly confined to bishops. While in the 3rd cent. presbyters were held to share in the episcopal sacerdotium, and could offer the Eucharist and receive penitent lapsi, it seems that these functions were to be exercised only in the absence of the bishop and were regarded as delegated by him. With the spread of Christianity in the country and the establishment of parish churches, the presbyters adopted more fully the priestly functions of the bishop. As the parish priest became the normal celebrant of the Eucharist and customarily exercised the power of absolution, he came to be regarded increasingly as the representative of God to the people rather than the converse. He acquired a position outside the feudal hierarchy, though he remained entirely subordinate to his bishop, and the validity of his position depended on his Ordination. The tendency of medieval theology to see the priesthood of the clergy almost exclusively in relation to the Mass led to its rejection by the Reformers. The term ‘priest’ was retained in the BCP apparently to make clear that deacons were not to celebrate the Holy Communion. See also ORDERS AND ORDINATION. |
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E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "priest." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. 12 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "priest." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. (February 12, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O95-priest.html E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "priest." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Retrieved February 12, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O95-priest.html |
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Priest
Priest
JudaismThe kohanim (sing., kohen) are a hereditary class whose special responsibility was the performance of the cultic ceremonies of the Jerusalem Temple. The Hebrew scriptures indicate in some places that only the descendants of Aaron have the right to priesthood (Leviticus 8) and in others that the entire tribe of Levi has a priestly role (Deuteronomy 33. 8–10); to these were added the Zadokites (perhaps predecessors of Sadducees) when David captured Jerusalem and assimilated the cult of Zadok. After the destruction of the Temple in 70 CE, the sacrificial system came to an end. Knowledge of priestly descent can no longer be proved. None the less supposed Kohanim enjoy certain privileges in the synagogue. Because of the doubt entailed in priestly ancestry, the Progressive movements disregard all the laws applying to Kohanim. ChristianityIn Roman Catholic, Orthodox, and Anglican Churches, the priest is the minister who is typically in charge of a parish. The English word is ultimately derived from Gk. presbyteros, as the office is derived from that of the early Christian presbyter. The idea of ‘priesthood’, in the sacrificial sense continuous with the Jewish office, only gradually attached to this order of minister. At first, the sacrifice of the eucharist was the function of bishops only, but with the spread of Christianity to country districts priests were allowed to consecrate the eucharist themselves. This opened the way for a doctrine that priestly powers were conferred in ordination, especially when in the 11th cent. the practice spread of ordaining priests who had no benefice. The priest thus became the normal celebrant of the eucharist and after 1215 the one who heard confessions. He remained, however, subordinate to the bishop, who alone could ordain and confirm. The tendency of medieval theology to see the priesthood of the clergy in terms of the mass led to its rejection by the Reformers. Protestant Christians thus take the view that priesthood belongs only to Christ and, derivatively, to ‘all believers’ (1 Peter 2. 5, 9). The term ‘priest’ is then sometimes applied to functionaries in other religions, as e.g. to mullahs in Islam, or to granthi or mahant among Sikhs, to hotṛ and brahmans among Hindus, to tao-shih among Taoists, to magi among Zoroastrians, but the differences in order, duties, appointment, and role are extreme. |
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JOHN BOWKER. "Priest." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. 12 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. JOHN BOWKER. "Priest." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. (February 12, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O101-Priest.html JOHN BOWKER. "Priest." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Retrieved February 12, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O101-Priest.html |
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priest
priest / prēst/ • n. 1. an ordained minister of the Catholic, Orthodox, or Anglican Church having the authority to perform certain rites and administer certain sacraments. ∎ a person who performs religious ceremonies and duties in a non-Christian religion. 2. (in full fish priest) a mallet used to kill fish caught when angling. • v. [tr.] (usu. be priested) formal ordain to the priesthood. DERIVATIVES: priest·like / -ˌlīk/ adj. |
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"priest." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 12 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "priest." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (February 12, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-priest.html "priest." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved February 12, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-priest.html |
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priest
priest clergyman in the second of the holy orders; (sacrificing) minister of religion. OE. prēost (with unexpl. ēo), corr. to OHG. priast, prēst; shortening of the form repr. by OFris. prēstere, OS., OHG. prēster (MDu., Du., MHG., G. priester) — ecclL. presbyter PRESBYTER, through pop. *prēster.
Hence priestess XVII. — (O)F. priesthood OE. |
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T. F. HOAD. "priest." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 12 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. T. F. HOAD. "priest." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (February 12, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-priest.html T. F. HOAD. "priest." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved February 12, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-priest.html |
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priest
priest priest's hole a hiding place for a Roman Catholic priest during times of religious persecution; these secret cupboards and passages, constructed especially in the Elizabethan period in the houses of Catholic gentry, were intended to provide refuge if necessary for days and even weeks.
See also once a priest, always a priest. |
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ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "priest." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 12 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "priest." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (February 12, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-priest.html ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "priest." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Retrieved February 12, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-priest.html |
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priest
priest in Christianity: see orders, holy . |
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"priest." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 12 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "priest." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. (February 12, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-X-priest.html "priest." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Retrieved February 12, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-X-priest.html |
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priest
priest •arriviste, artiste, batiste, beast, dirigiste, east, feast, least, Mideast, modiste, northeast, piste, priest, southeast, uncreased, unreleased, yeast
•wildebeest • hartebeest • beanfeast
•anapaest (US anapest)
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Cite this article
"priest." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 12 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "priest." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (February 12, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-priest.html "priest." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved February 12, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-priest.html |
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