Pastor in the context of "Clergy"

A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of dioceses. The role or office of the bishop is called episcopacy or the episcopate. Organisationally, several Christian denominations utilise ecclesiastical structures that call for the position of bishops, while other denominations have dispensed with this office, seeing it as a symbol of power. Bishops have also exercised political authority within their dioceses.

Traditionally, bishops claim apostolic succession and the historic episcopacy, a direct historical lineage dating back to the original Twelve Apostles or Saint Paul. The bishops are by doctrine understood as those who possess the full priesthood given by Jesus Christ, and therefore may ordain other clergy, including other bishops. A person ordained as a deacon, priest (i.e. presbyter), and then bishop is understood to hold the fullness of the ministerial priesthood, given responsibility by Christ to govern, teach and sanctify the Body of Christ (the Christian Church). Priests, deacons and lay ministers co-operate and assist their bishops in pastoral ministry.

Presbyter (/ˈprɛzbɪtər/) is an honorific title for Christian clergy. The word derives from the Greek presbyteros, which means elder or senior, although many in Christian antiquity understood presbyteros to refer to the bishop functioning as overseer. The word presbyter is used many times in the New Testament, referring both to the Jewish leadership and the "tradition of the elders", and to the leaders of the early Christian community.

In modern Catholic, Orthodox and Anglican usage, presbyter is distinct from bishop: in Roman Catholicism it means Catholic priest. In other Protestant usage, for example, Methodism, presbyter does not refer to a member of a distinctive priesthood called priests but rather to a minister, pastor, or elder.

In Christianity, a minister is a person authorised by a church or other religious organization to perform functions such as teaching of beliefs; leading services such as weddings, baptisms or funerals; or otherwise providing spiritual guidance to the community. The term is taken from Latin minister ("servant", "attendant"). In some church traditions the term is usually used for people who have been ordained, but in other traditions it can also be used for non-ordained.

In the Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Oriental Orthodox Church, Anglicanism and Lutheranism, the concept of a priesthood is emphasized, though in the Church of England there are nearly as many non-ordained licensed lay ministers as there are paid clergy. In other traditions such as Baptist, Methodist, and Reformed groups like Congregationalists and Presbyterians, the term "minister" usually refers to a member of the ordained clergy who leads a congregation or participates in a role in a parachurch ministry; such a person may serve as an elder (presbyter), pastor, preacher, bishop, or chaplain.

Pastoral care refers to the emotional, physical, and spiritual duties that pastors supplies to their community. This practice exists in many spiritual and religious faiths and is often considered inclusive of religious and non-religious forms of support. Pastors are often part of religious communities.