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Clergy vs Priesthood - What's the difference?

clergy | priesthood |

As nouns the difference between clergy and priesthood

is that clergy is body of persons, such as ministers, sheiks, priests and rabbis, who are trained and ordained for religious service while priesthood is the role or office of a priest.

clergy

English

Noun

(clergies)
  • Body of persons, such as ministers, sheiks, priests and rabbis, who are trained and ordained for religious service.
  • *, chapter=5
    • , title= The Mirror and the Lamp , passage=Then everybody once more knelt, and soon the blessing was pronounced. The choir and the clergy trooped out slowly, […], down the nave to the western door. […] At a seemingly immense distance the surpliced group stopped to say the last prayer.}}
    Today we brought together clergy from the Wiccan, Christian, New Age and Islamic traditions for an interfaith dialogue.

    Derived terms

    * clergyman

    Related terms

    * cleric * clerical * clerk

    References

    *

    priesthood

    English

    Noun

  • The role or office of a priest
  • Priests as a group; the clergy
  • Authority to act in the name of God.