Adeanery (ordecanate) is an ecclesiastical entity in theCatholic Church, theEastern Orthodox Church, theAnglican Communion, theEvangelical Church in Germany, and theChurch of Norway. A deanery is either the jurisdiction orresidence of adean.
Therural chapter is the body (college) comprising all the clergy of a deanery. It originated in the 13th century. It usually had administrative responsibility and the right to elect the dean.[1]
In theCatholic Church, Can.374 §2 of theCode of Canon Law grants tobishops the possibility to join together several neighbouringparishes into special groups, such asvicariates forane, or deaneries.[2]
Each deanery is headed by avicar forane, also called a dean orarchpriest, who is—according to the definition provided in canon 553[3]—apriest appointed by the bishop after consultation with the priests exercisingministry in the deanery. Canon 555 defines the duties of a dean as:[3]
Additionally, the dean must follow the particular norms of thediocese. Canon 555 also particularly mentions that a dean must visit the parishes of the district in accord with the regulations made by the diocesan bishop.[3]
In theChurch of England and many other Anglican churches a deanery is a group ofparishes forming a district within anarchdeaconry. The more formal term,rural deanery, is less often used, though the superintendent of a deanery is theRural Dean. Rural deaneries are very ancient and originally corresponded with thehundreds. The title "dean" (Latindecanus) may derive from the custom of dividing a hundred into tentithings. In medieval times rural deans acted as officers of the diocesanbishop, butarchdeacons gradually took over most of their duties. However, the office was revived during the 19th century. Modifications to deanery boundaries may be made according to the provisions of theArchdeaconries and Rural Deaneries Act 1874 (37 & 38 Vict. c. 63).[4][5]
Thedeanery synod has a membership of all clergy who are licensed to a parish within the deanery, plus elected lay members from every parish. They were established in the 1970s.
The term is also often used to refer to the house, or official residence, of the dean of a cathedral. The term is also used to apply to the ecclesiastical districts ofJersey andGuernsey, which areRoyal Peculiars and whose deans hold a status more nearly equivalent to anArchdeacon than a rural dean.[6]
In theEpiscopal Church, deaneries are synonymous with convocations and are headed by deans.
Deaneries also exist in theEastern Orthodox Church, where they are subdivisions of a diocese.[7][8][9]
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