The Reverend is anhonorificstyle given before the names of certain Christianclergy andministers. There are sometimes differences in the way the style is used in different countries and church traditions.The Reverend is correctly called astyle, but is sometimes referred to as atitle, form of address, or title of respect.[1]
The term is ananglicisation of the Latinreverendus, the style originally used in Latin documents in medieval Europe. It is thegerundive or future passive participle of the verbrevereri ("to respect; to revere"), meaning "[one who is] to be revered/must be respected".The Reverend is therefore equivalent tothe Honourable orthe Venerable. Originating as a general term of respectful address in the 15th century, it became particularly associated with clergy by the 17th century,[2] with variations associated with certain ranks in the church. It is paired with a modifier or noun for some offices in some traditions:Lutheran archbishops,Anglican archbishops, and mostCatholic bishops are usually styledThe Most Reverend (reverendissimus); other Lutheran bishops, Anglican bishops, and Catholic bishops are styledThe Right Reverend.[3][4][5]
The formsHis Reverence andHer Reverence are also sometimes used, along with their parallel in direct address,Your Reverence.[6]
In traditional and formal English usage it is still considered incorrect to drop the definite article,the, beforeReverend. In practice, however,the is often not used in both written and spoken English. When the style is used within a sentence,the is correctly in lower-case.[7] Abbreviations forReverend includeRev.,Revd (orRevd), andRev'd.
The Reverend is traditionally used as an adjectival form with first names (or initials) and surname, e.g. "the Reverend John Smith" or "the Reverend J. F. Smith"; if the first names (or initials) are unknown, the correct form is "The Reverend Mr/Mrs/Miss/Ms Smith".[4] Use of the prefix with the surname alone, e.g. "The Reverend Smith", is incorrect (asolecism) in formal usage.[8][4] The style always precedes titles, such asCanon orDoctor.[4]
In the 20th and 21st centuries, it has been increasingly common[citation needed] for the term to be used as a noun and for clergy to be referred to as being eithera reverend orthe reverend, or to be addressed as simplyreverend. This has traditionally been considered incorrect on the basis that it is equivalent to referring to a judge as beingan honourable or an adult man asa mister, both of which are also grammatically improper.[8][9] It is likewise incorrect to form the pluralreverends. Some dictionaries,[10] however, do place the noun rather than the adjective as the word's principal form, owing to an increasing use of the word as a noun among people with no religious background or knowledge of traditional styles of ecclesiastical address. When several clergy are referred to, they are often styled individually (e.g. "The Reverend John Smith and the Reverend Henry Brown"); in a list of clergy,the Revv is sometimes put before the list of names, especially in the Catholic Church in Britain and Ireland.[11]
In a unique case,the Reverend was used to refer to a churchconsistory, a local administrative body. "The Reverend Coetus" and "the Reverend Assembly" were used to refer to the collective body of local officials during the transformation of theDutch Reformed Church in the mid-18th century.[12]
The use of the Christian term "Reverend" for therabbi of a congregation was common inReform Judaism in the 19th and early 20th centuries; however, theCentral Conference of American Rabbis deprecated this usage in 1897.[13] The style is also sometimes used by leaders in other religions such asBuddhism.[14][better source needed]
1.2His/Your Reverence A title or form of address to a member of the clergy, especially a priest in Ireland. 'I regret, Your Reverence, that I cannot come to meet you.'
