A minister of religion serves a religious community or institution in a recognized role. In Christian settings, a minister may preach, teach, lead worship, administer sacraments or offer pastoral care. The title alone gives only part of the picture. A person may be ordained for one set of duties, appointed to serve a particular congregation or employed to provide care in a hospital. Each of those arrangements answers a different question about what the person is there to do.
What does a minister do?
A congregation may turn to its minister for several things in the course of one week. At a service, the minister might interpret a passage of scripture and lead prayers. During a visit, the work might consist of listening to someone after a death. When a congregation prepares for a baptism, the church’s own rules determine who can preside. Teaching, care and authority to perform a rite can all belong to the same position, and they can also be shared among people with different responsibilities.
The United Methodist Church provides one example of that distinction. Its discipline authorizes ordained elders to preach, give pastoral care, administer sacraments and oversee church life. A licensed pastor shares those responsibilities within the setting of an appointment. Someone attending a local church might see either person doing similar work on a Sunday. The authority of the office and the scope of the appointment explain how each person came to do it. United Methodist Book of Discipline, paragraph 340
Religious offices in ancient sources
A statue at the Metropolitan Museum of Art preserves the name of Harnefer, an Egyptian priest of the late fourth century BCE. The museum records his titles as Divine Father and Prophet of Amun and identifies Karnak as the place where his statue stood. The object connects a named person with a particular sanctuary and god. It gives firmer ground for discussing an ancient religious office than a general account of what priests are supposed to have done everywhere. The Met’s catalogue entry for Harnefer
In the early Christian Didache, chapter 15 asks its readers to appoint people for offices translated as bishops and deacons. The text expects them to be honest and trustworthy and describes their service alongside that of prophets and teachers. The instruction preserves an early Christian community’s expectations about whom to appoint. Here the emphasis is on the character and work of the people entrusted with these offices. Didache, chapter 15
Governing a community and presiding at worship
The Rule of Benedict, composed around 530 according to the introduction to the Saint Meinrad translation, makes a distinction within a single monastery. Chapter 2 holds the abbot responsible for what the community learns from his words and from his conduct. Chapter 62 allows the abbot to choose a suitable monk if the monastery needs a priest or deacon. The ordained monk still lives under the rule and the abbot. This arrangement separates the responsibility of guiding the community from the duties of the monk chosen for ordination. Saint Meinrad introduction · Rule of Benedict, chapter 2 · Rule of Benedict, chapter 62
In a different setting, the Lutheran Augsburg Confession of 1530 addresses who may teach publicly in the church and administer the sacraments. Article XIV requires a proper call for those duties. The call is a matter of public responsibility within the church. It concerns who is authorized to act on behalf of the community when teaching or administering a sacrament. Augsburg Confession, Article XIV
Religious teaching and care beyond a congregation
Terms from other traditions carry their own histories. Writing for the Jewish Theological Seminary in 2014, Arnold M. Eisen described teaching Torah as central to the work of a rabbi. He gave examples of rabbis serving in congregations, schools, Jewish organizations and campus communities. In each setting, the work of interpreting a tradition and helping others study it can take a different form. Arnold M. Eisen, “Calling All Rabbis”
Chaplaincy shows how a setting can shape whom a person serves. Birmingham Women’s and Children’s hospitals describe a multifaith team that offers spiritual and pastoral support to patients and families of any faith or none. One family may welcome a conversation about what they are going through. Another may ask for prayer or a blessing. In this example, the needs and preferences of the patient or family help determine what a visit involves. Birmingham Women’s and Children’s chaplaincy service
Conclusion
To understand a religious office, ask who entrusts the person with the work, whom the person serves and which duties the appointment carries. Those questions explain why authority to preside at worship, responsibility for teaching a community and the work of caring for patients can belong to different people. They also help explain how several of those duties can come together in one ministry.
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