VOA慢速英语2021--What Are 'Clergymen'?

 

This week on Ask a Teacher, we answer a question from Ichiro in Japan. He writes:

Question:

Dear VOA, Japanese people don't understand Christian¹ religious terms such as "religious leaders" "clergy²" and "clergymen." What are the differences?

-Ichiro, Japan

Answer:

Hi Ichiro,

The terms "clergy" and "clergymen" are general and can describe any official leaders within established religions. "Clergymen" is plural³ and used when the leaders are men. "Clergywomen" is the plural form for women.

Within Christianity, there are several terms for the leadership roles. Many are less commonly known, even by some Christians⁴.

Christianity is divided into several smaller sub-groups, or sects⁵. Examples of Christian sects include Catholics, Baptists and Protestants.

Catholic church

The Catholic Church has a long list of religious leaders.

In Catholicism, priests are leaders who perform religious services, such as worship services, and ceremonies.

In fact, all clergy in the Catholic church, including priests, bishops⁶ and deacons, are permitted to give sermons, or religious speeches. They also can lead worship and perform religious ceremonies, such as marriages and funerals.

The highest leader in the Catholic church is the pope, who lives in the Vatican, an independent city-state inside Rome, Italy. The current pope is Pope Francis.

Baptist, Protestant churches

Baptist and Protestant churches have far fewer leaders than the Catholic Church.

They call their main religious leader any of three names – "pastor⁷" "minister" or "reverend." This person leads church services, performs religious ceremonies, and gives spiritual or religious guidance to church members.

There is, however, one role common to Catholics, Baptists, and Protestants. It is that of "deacon." Deacons have a lower status than a church's main religious leader. They are considered "servant leaders" and help carry out the duties of priests and pastors⁸. They are also expected to build a relationship with the local church community.

Words in This Story

Plural - adj. relating to a form of a word that refers to more than one person or thing

Role - n. a part that someone or something has in a particular activity or situation

Worship - n. to show respect and love for God or for a god especially by praying, having religious services, etc.

Status - n. the position or rank of someone or something when compared to others in a society, organization, group, etc.

1 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

2 clergy   

n.[总称]牧师，神职人员

参考例句：

• I could heartily wish that more of our country clergy would follow this example.我衷心希望，我国有更多的牧师效法这个榜样。
• All the local clergy attended the ceremony.当地所有的牧师出席了仪式。

3 plural   

n.复数；复数形式；adj.复数的

参考例句：

• Most plural nouns in English end in's '.英语的复数名词多以s结尾。
• Here you should use plural pronoun.这里你应该用复数代词。

4 Christians   

n.基督教徒( Christian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Christians of all denominations attended the conference. 基督教所有教派的人都出席了这次会议。
• His novel about Jesus caused a furore among Christians. 他关于耶稣的小说激起了基督教徒的公愤。

5 sects   

n.宗派，教派( sect的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Members of these sects are ruthlessly persecuted and suppressed. 这些教派的成员遭到了残酷的迫害和镇压。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He had subdued the religious sects, cleaned up Saigon. 他压服了宗教派别，刷新了西贡的面貌。 来自辞典例句

6 bishops   

（基督教某些教派管辖大教区的）主教( bishop的名词复数 )； （国际象棋的）象

参考例句：

• Each player has two bishops at the start of the game. 棋赛开始时，每名棋手有两只象。
• "Only sheriffs and bishops and rich people and kings, and such like. “他劫富济贫，抢的都是郡长、主教、国王之类的富人。

7 pastor   

n.牧师，牧人

参考例句：

• He was the son of a poor pastor.他是一个穷牧师的儿子。
• We have no pastor at present:the church is run by five deacons.我们目前没有牧师：教会的事是由五位执事管理的。

8 pastors   

n.（基督教的）牧师( pastor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Do we show respect to our pastors, missionaries, Sunday school teachers? 我们有没有尊敬牧师、宣教士，以及主日学的老师？ 来自互联网
• Should pastors or elders be paid, or serve as a volunteer? 牧师或长老需要付给酬劳，还是志愿的事奉呢？ 来自互联网