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Mother of the Church. Mother of the Church (Latin: Mater Ecclesiae) is a title given to Mary in the Catholic Church, as officially declared by Pope Paul VI in 1964. The title first appeared in the 4th century writings of Saint Ambrose of Milan, as rediscovered by Hugo Rahner. [1] It was also used by Pope Benedict XIV in 1748 [2] and then by ...
Heads of some women's religious orders are styled as The Reverend Mother (even if not ordained). Canons are often styled as The Reverend Canon when ordained, or simply The Canon Mr/Mrs/Miss/Ms/Mx when laity. Deans are usually styled as The Very Reverend. Archdeacons are usually styled as The Venerable (The Ven).
The hierarchy of the Catholic Church consists of its bishops, priests, and deacons. [1][2] In the ecclesiological sense of the term, "hierarchy" strictly means the "holy ordering" of the church, the Body of Christ, so to respect the diversity of gifts and ministries necessary for genuine unity. In canonical and general usage, it refers to those ...
A Catholic priest baptizing a child. In denominations of Christianity, a godparent or sponsor is someone who bears witness to a child's baptism (christening) and later is willing to help in their catechesis, as well as their lifelong spiritual formation. [1] In the past, in some countries, the role carried some legal obligations as well as ...
Mary was the mother of Jesus, and as such is highly venerated within the Catholic Church as the Mother of God. The church holds that she was immaculately conceived and, while betrothed to the carpenter Joseph, Mary was visited by the angel Gabriel who announced that, though a virgin, she would give birth to a son, Jesus. [134]
Abbesses are, like abbots, major superiors according to canon law, the equivalents of abbots or bishops (the ordained male members of the church hierarchy who have, by right of their own office, executive jurisdiction over a building, diocesan territory, or a communal or non-communal group of persons—juridical entities under church law).
Deaconess. The ministry of a deaconess is a usually non-ordained ministry for women in some Protestant, Oriental Orthodox, and Eastern Orthodox churches to provide pastoral care, especially for other women, and which may carry a limited liturgical role. The word comes from the Greek diakonos (διάκονος), for "deacon", which means a ...
A nun who is elected to head her religious house is termed an abbess if the house is an abbey, a prioress if it is a monastery, or more generically may be referred to as "Mother Superior" and styled "Reverend Mother". The distinction between abbey and monastery has to do with the terms used by a particular order or by the level of independence ...