SOME TITLES OF HIERARCHY IN THE CHURCH

BELOW ARE SOME TITLES OF THOSE IN CHURCH HIERARCHY.

Prepared by Rev. Deacon. Nyonje

In the Catholic Church we have the following hierarchy and how they are addressed.

1. TRANSITIONAL DEACONS- He is addressed simply as Rev. Deacon / Rev. Dcn.

Note:

He is transitional because he is NOT a permanent deacon. There are permanent deacons in the Catholic Church who are mostly married men - To see how they vest in liturgical celebration, please see the attached photo. ( Taken at St. Paul's Chapel University of Nairobi  { Kenya } on 21st December 2020 )

PERMANENT DRACONS:  are men ordained to an office ( dicaonate ) in the Catholic Church who normally have no intention or desire of becoming priests. They serve to those matters pertaining to office of deacons. He can be single or married. If the latter, he must be married before being ordained a deacon. If his wife dies before him, he may be ordained a priest if the bishop permits and approves. This is not common in Kenya.

2. REVEREND FATHER 

a - Generally all Catholic Priests are Addressed as Rev. Fr

b. VERY REVEREND FATHER -  Those Priests elevated to some offices in the Church i.e, Secretary of AMECEA, KCCB, Administrators of Cathedrals, Rector's of Seminaries, Vicar General, Episcopal Vicars etc... can be addressed as Very REV FR also by Virtue of the Office he holds. Examples; Very.Rev. Fr. Lugonzo, Very. Rev. Fr. Oseso etc...This title has nothing to do with the Sacramentality of Holy Order.

c. MONSIGNOR (Mons. Msgr. Mgr.) - The title of monsignor in the Roman Catholic Church signifies a priest who has distinguished himself and has been honoured by the Pope for his service to the church. Monsignor is an honorary title, rather than a specific position in the church hierarchy, so a monsignor does not necessarily have any duties distinct from those of any other priest. However, some positions within the Vatican automatically carry the title of monsignor.

3.  BISHOP: A Bishop is the head of a Catholic district or Diocese. A Bishop is addressed as My Lord, Your Lordship. He governs all the activities of the Church particular to his Diocese. For example,Rt. Rev. Maurice Muhatia Makumba is the Bishop of Nakuru,he Shepherds the flock and goveen all the temporary goods within his jurisdiction.

NOTE:

The Bishopric is the FULLNESS OF THE PRIESTHOOD in the Catholic Church. The Episcopal Ordination (Ordination of a Bishop is the Fullness of the Sacrament of Holy Orders.

While all of the baptized share in the universal priesthood, Holy Orders is the sacrament of the ordained ministry. Holy Orders come in three degrees: deacon, priest or presbyter, and bishop. Only two degrees share the ministerial priesthood, bishops and priests. Priests are co-workers of the bishops, while deacons are ordained for the bishop. Deacons assist the Priest in liturgical celebration.

4. Archbishop - An Archbishop is the head of an Archdiocese. 

In the Catholic Church, archbishops and bishops rank below cardinals. A bishop oversees a diocese, which is a collection of local parishes; and an archbishop administers an archdiocese, which is just a really large diocese.

However, the pope is the bishop of Rome. Together with the other bishops they form a "College of Bishops" where he is the first among equals. Yet the College has no power without him hence it acts "cum Petro et sub Petro". The Cardinals are in a class by themselves. They are the princes of the Church. So in a way, the bishops are not really inferior to them.

An archdiocese also is called a metropolitan or the “head” diocese of an ecclesiastical province. For example, Nairobi  is the Metropolitan to which Nakuru Diocese belong. 

You address the Archbishop as His Grace ((if you are talking about him) or Your Grace (if you are talking to him).

THE SPECIAL DUTIES OF AN ARCHBISHOP IN RELATION TO THE SUFFRAGAN DIOCESES WITHIN HIS PROVINCE

The archbishop, while clearly holding an office with great prestige, has immediate jurisdiction only over his own diocese.  

However, as the metropolitan archbishop, he has several important duties: 

(1) to insure that his suffragan dioceses are vigilant in the faith and ecclesiastical discipline; 

(2) to inform the Holy Father in the case of any abuse or neglect in another diocese, and with his permission to conduct a formal visitation to the suffragan bishop; 

(3) to appoint a diocesan administrator when the suffragan diocese has no bishop; 

(4) to install a newly appointed bishop for the suffragan diocese; and 

(5) to perform other special duties as circumstances warrant (Code of Canon Law, #464).  

The archbishop also meets with the suffragan bishops in a provincial council to discuss matters of importance to the region.  

Finally, in regard to juridical matters, the Metropolitan Tribunal would be the first court of appeal for cases adjudicated in the local diocesan Tribunal.

5. Cardinal - this one is higher than an Archbishop in rank but you can have a Cardinal Archbishop - a Cardinal who is also an Archbishop. The archbishop, while clearly holding an office with great prestige, has immediate jurisdiction only over his own diocese.

On the whole, a Cardinal is a high ecclesiastic appointed by the pope to the College of Cardinals and ranking above every other ecclesiastic except the pope. Every Cardinal is a potential candidate for the office of Pope in the event of a vacant Holy See.

Cardinal has 3 or 4 Orders as shown below in increasing order of ranking:

I) Cardinal Deacon

II) Cardinal Protodeacon

III)Cardinal Priests

IV) Cardinal Bishop 

You address a Cardinal as Your Eminence or His Eminence.

6. The Pope - the highest level of the Priesthood. He is elected by the conclave of electors or college of Cardinals - all Cardinals below the age of 80.

The pope, also known as the supreme pontiff or the Roman pontiff, is the bishop of Rome, chief pastor of the worldwide Catholic Church, and head of state or sovereign of the Vatican City State. 

NOTE:

The cardinals do not have to choose one of their own number - theoretically any baptised male Catholic can be elected pope - but tradition says that they will almost certainly give the job to a cardinal. 

The Pope is addressed as His Holiness or Your Holiness.

Thanks for reading. Rev. Dcn. Nyonje wishes you peace and joy .  ( 0708607911)