Presbyter is, in theBible, a synonym forbishop (episkopos), referring to a leader in local church congregations. In modernEastern Orthodox usage, it is distinct frombishop and synonymous withpriest. Its literal meaning in Greek (presbyteros) is "elder".
Through the sacrament ofholy orders, an ordination to priesthood is performed by the bishop. But this requires the consent of the whole people of God, so at a point in the service, thecongregation acclaim the ordination by shouting "Axios!" ("He is worthy!").
Orthodox priests consist of bothmarriedclergy andcelibate clergy. In the Orthodox Church a married man may be ordained to the priesthood. His marriage, however, must be the first for both him and his wife. He may not remarry and continue in his ministry even if his wife should die.
If a single, or unmarried, or celibate, man is ordained, he must remain celibate to retain his service. A celibate priest is not necessarily the same as that of clergy who aremonastics, as celibacy does not automatically entail monasticism, though Orthodox monasticism does denote a call to celibacy. A priest-monk is called ahieromonk.
It is church doctrine that thepriesthood must strive to fulfill the grace given to them with the gift of the "laying on of hands" in the most perfect that they can. But the Church teaches that the reality and effectiveness of thesacraments of the church, ministered by the presbyters, do not depend upon personal virtue, but upon the presence of Christ who acts in his church by the Holy Spirit. The same as with bishops, it is Christ, through his chosen ministers, who acts as teacher, good shepherd, forgiver, and healer. It is Christ remitting sins, and curing the physical, mental and spiritual ills of mankind. The priest is an icon of Christ.
Priests normally exercise the function of pastors of parishes, a function which was normally done by the bishops in early times. They are rectors of the local congregations of Christians. They preside at the celebration of the liturgy and teach, preach, counsel and exercise the ministries of forgiveness and healing.
Since the presbyters are assigned by the bishop and belong to the specific congregations they have no authority or services to perform apart from their bishop and their own particular parish community. On thealtar table of each parish, there is the cloth called theantimension signed by the bishop, which is the permission to the community to gather and to act as the Church. Without the antimension, the priest and his people cannot function legitimately.
The earliest organization of theChristian churches inJudea was similar to that ofJewishsynagogues, who were governed by a council of elders (presbyteroi). InActs 11:30 and 15:22, we see this collegiate system of government in Jerusalem, and in Acts 14:23, theApostle Paul ordains elders in the churches he founded. Initially, thesepresbyters were apparently identical with theoverseers (episcopate, i.e.,bishops), as such passages as Acts 20:17 andTitus 1:5,7 indicate, and the terms were interchangeable.
Shortly after theNew Testament period, with the death of theApostles, there was a differentiation in the usage of the synonymous terms, giving rise to the appearance of two distinct offices,bishop andpresbyter. The bishop was understood mainly as the president of the council of presbyters, and so the bishop came to be distinguished both in honor and in prerogative from the presbyters, who were seen as deriving their authority by means of delegation from the bishop. The distinction between presbyter and bishop is made fairly soon after the Apostolic period, as is seen in the 2nd century writings of St.Ignatius of Antioch, who uses the terms consistently and clearly to refer to two different offices (along withdeacon).
Initially, each local congregation in the Church had its own bishop. Eventually, as the church grew, individual congregations no longer were served directly by a bishop. The bishop in a large city would appoint a presbyter to pastor the flock in each congregation, acting as his delegate.
The Eastern Orthodox Church often refers to presbyters in English aspriests (priest is etymologically derived from the Greekpresbyteros via the Latinpresbyter). This usage is seen by some Protestant Christians as stripping thelaity of its rightful priestly status, while those who use the term defend its usage by saying that, while they do believe in thepriesthood of all believers, they do not believe in theeldership of all believers.
Presbyters are often referred to asFather (Fr.), though that is not an official title. Rather, it is a term of affection used by Christians for theirordained elders. In this context, a priest's first name is generally used after the wordFather.
Priests are often styled asThe Reverend (Rev.) and therefore referred to asThe Reverend Father (Rev. Fr.). Higher in bestowed honor and responsibility,archpriests andprotopresbyters are styled asThe Very Reverend (V. Rev.), whilearchimandrites can be styled asThe Very Reverend orThe Right Reverend (Rt. Rev.). It is also appropriate and traditional to refer to a cleric as "the PriestName" or "ArchpriestName". This latter practice is especially prominent in churches with Slavic roots, such as theChurch of Russia or theOrthodox Church in America.
Monastics who are ordained to the priesthood are known aspriest-monks orhieromonks.
