Faith Fact- Presbyter or Priest?

 


If you look in The Book of Common Prayer at the Concerning the Service section before the service for the Ordination of a Priest, you will notice the word "presbyter". This word also pops up in the ordination service under the Examination, as well as various instructions through out the service.

The Outline of Faith sheds more light on this in its questions under the Ministry section. There it is made clear that the words "priest" and "presbyter" are interchangeable.

"Presbyter" comes from the greek word for "elder". It was contracted over time, leading to the word "priest". That is why these words both refer to the same order in the church.

Denominations that contain Presbyterian in their title refer to this word "presbyter". They are churches that are run by a counsel of presbyters, as opposed to bishops or some other form of ministry, hence their name.

If you've ever wondered why The Book of Common Prayer sometimes uses the word "presbyter", now you know. You can even choose to refer to your priests as presbyters. They'll know you mean the same thing.


See The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church for more information.