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Esdra
Guest
The Mod has erased some of the posts here…Hi
yes, you are right, I was talking about my Baptist Pastor.
You see, in the German speaking countries there is a severe difference between pastor and priest:
In the Orthodox Churches and the CC priests are called priests. [which means in German as well “Pfarrer” as well “Priester”. More common is the use of “Pfarrer”]
In the Lutheran Evangelical Church, the Reformed Evangelical Church and the “fundamental Evangelical Churches” (Like Baptists, Anabaptists or Pentecostals) they are called pastors!
The term Pastor is usually reserved for the various Protestant Churches ONLY!
[So, I was rather confused when you were using pastor for a Catholic priest when I at first read that here in CAF!]
By the way: I haven’t been for a while in contact with a Catholic priest/pastor!
Esdra
this is what I have written before:
so in Europe father would be “Pfarrer” (the also existing Term “Vater” is seldom used nowadays!) who can be the “pastor” of a parish (but there can be more than one father; For example in our Parish we have two fathers [one of them is cooperator], one deacon and 3-4 “pastoral assistents” [who have studied CC theology but who don’t have any vocation.])Thanks for the clarification.
The confusion comes from the fact that in the U.S. our priests (refered to as “father”) is also the “Pastor” of the parish. In the proestant realm the terms used can be pastor, preacher, reverend etc. About the only term that overlaps is “Pastor” and so my uncertanty.
Peace
James
But as Austria is a Catholic dominated country, I for example know that the pastor of our local Lutheran Evangelical Church is normally referred to “Evangelischer Pfarrer” (= evangelical father), although the correct German term would be “Pastor” (= pastor).
Among the “Free Evangelical Churches” such termes are in general seldom used, as all are priests and the pastor is “only” the Church leader. ('Though I do, as I have a lot of contact with our pastor, as he is somehow my “godfather in Christ” [Hope you understand what I mean; this means that he was the first and most important person to talk with concerning believe; And I have learned a lot from him!]
So he normally doesn’t see himself as something “higher”, like some Catholic priests behaved, especially in former times.
Church leader/pastor is simply another activity in the Church like baking cakes and making coffee for the sitting together after Church, or the worship/praise-team or cleaning; or preecher, which is also another seperate activity in our church; although our pastor, or our elder, usually preeches himself in service.
Esdra