What is the difference between a Pastor, Priest and Vicar?

Answer 1

Their taste for kids.

Answer 2

Different denominaions would answer your question differently.

In the church I was raised in as a child, a "Pastor" was an ordained member of the clergy who would usually be in charge of a local congregation. Large congregations would often have more than one Pastor on staff.

A "Vicar", would be someone in training to become a Pastor who usually already had a four year college degree, plus two years of seminary training.

At that point the person would be assigned to do a on year long internship at a local church before completing his third and final year in the seminary.

That "Intern" would often carry the title of "Vicar".

Our church bullletin would read like this:

Pastoral Intern: Vicar Kenneth Marks

He would wear the black suit and backwards collar of a clergyman, and in a formal church service he would wear a white robe over that, like the pastors, but he would not have a stole around his neck, which was the sign of an ordained ministrer.

Vicars were also not allowed to perform weddings or funerals or officiate at the sacrements and could not use the term "Rev." or "Reverend", yet.

A Priest was an office which didn't exist in our church since our church believed that all true believers were Priests.

There is no mention of the word, "Vicar" in the KJV or the NIV.

When describing the offices in the New Testament Church, the New Testament uses the term Pastor, but never Priest.

The word "priest" appears in the New Testament, but its a word used to describe all believers, not the clergy or anyone in a leadship position.

The word Pastor appears in the Old Testament only in the book of Jeremiah, referring to those who were teaching the children of Israel.

And it appears in Ephesians 4:11-12 as well.

In the context of the New Testament, the words Pastor and Elder and Bishop and Overseer are used pretty much interchangibly as those entrusted with the care and spiritual feeding of God's sheep which is another name for the church.

Note the church is not a building, it is the people.

Other denominations would use the above titles rather differently. I was raised in a Lutheran Church and that is how the Lutheran church of my youth used those titles.

Bible believing churches tend to be less formal about titles and they generally don't use the titles of "Vicar" or "Priest".

A college student hired to work with the youth group would often be given the title of "Youth Pastor" even though he was not a Licensed or Ordained Minister.

Whereas in my home Lutheran Church, a college student hired to work with the youth group would be called a "Youth Director".

They would never use the title "Youth Pastor" unless the person doing that job was already fully Ordained to the Ministry.

There are about 606 denominations in the USA and many of them might answer your question differently than I did.

For example the Roman Catholic Church calls the Pope the "Vicar of Christ". He isn't but that's one of his many titles.

Pastor Art

Answer 3

A Priest is a technician who is skilled at rituals of the Temple or Altar.

In other words someone who can officiate over Holy Days and Rituals.

A Pastor is someone who may or may not know all the ways of the Temple or Altar, but gives sermons and spritual guidence to the congreation by talking or giving a liturgy.

A Vicar is generally a representative. A Emmissary or Ambassador.

They can, at times, be rural Priests in some religions.

By are large they are, however, functionaries of the church hierarchy that serves as basic clerks or runners or go betweens.

They are like mediators.

They are like arbitrators.

They hold no official binding rank, but they represent the Church and can officiate to a degree (they can't, for example, do confessioins in the Catholic Church but they can do Communion if they know how to and are directed to).

They are not ordained

They are sactioned to a limited basis.

The most they can be are Lay Priests or high raanking Deacons

They are Bishop assistants that can serve as Para-Priest if required.

They are like LVNs or at the best Nurses.

If a nurse has assisted in hundreds of hours of surgery and she is alone in a distant area and someone has appendicitis she may attempt surgery if there is NO possible hope of a real doctor arrives soon enough to save the patient.

If she has no experience, the most she should do is comfort the patient.

That's how you should look at a Vicar.

Answer 4

Rank and, thereby, authority. In the Episcopal church, we have 3 ordained ranks: Deacon, Priest and Bishop. A Vicar or Curate is a Priest below the rank of Rector, the one in charge of the parish. A Pastor and a Rector are the same thing, depending on the denomination. Anyone from a Deacon upward is 'Reverend', though the titles modify to Very Reverend, Right Reverend, Most Reverend depending on station. A Minister is, in many cases, unordained (not Reverend) but is empowered or licensed to perform certain duties. They are often termed Lay Eucharistic Ministers or simply Eucharistic Ministers. In certain denominations, however, a Minister is equal to a Priest. The Roman Church has Cardinals, whose rank distinction is mostly in terms of authority. A Cardinal is one rank below Pope. The Roman Church also has Monsignors, which is between Priest and Cardinal. There are some things, ecumenically, that a Bishop can do that a Priest cannot, such as Confirm those who are baptized and also create a new Priest or Bishop. In simplest terms, an Ordained Priest can do anything except the above. All else is distinction in rank. A Priest, Rector, whatever, is in charge of a Parish and may have Priests under him, serving as Curate, Vicar, Archdeacon, etc. In a church with 1 priest, he does it all. A Bishop is in charge of a Diocese, a multitude of parishes. The area is geographic and may be tens of miles or hundreds of miles. In the Roman Church, a Cardinal is in charge of several Diocese. He is also one of the ranking members, empowered to elect (or become) Pope, etc. The Greek Church has Archpriests............... And so forth.

Answer 5

Pastor can apply to any denomination. A Priest is one who is given the authority to correctly preform the canon of the Mass/Eucharist and should be in the line of Apostolic Succession. Priest are in those church that are "liturgical" churches, such as the RC, Orthodox and Anglican. When at the altar a Priest 'becomes' Christ and it is Christ in that moment, acting through the priest, that changes the bread and wine into the body and blood of Christ. (this is something that a Minister can not do. A Minister can only preach. This is why in a Protestant church the bread and wine are only a 'remembrance', and nothing more.) The ability to become "persona Christi" at the altar is a spiritual gift that was give to the Apostles by Jesus. Only those ordained in the line of Apostolic Succession can truly have it. A Vicar is a priest, in charge of a small parish or mission
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vicar#Anglican.

Answer 6

A rose by any other name.

To me, they are one in the same.

I have equal respect for a protestant minister as I do for a catholic priest.

While the pastor of any church is a vicar and the pope is a vicar - it is also true that each priest and indeed each person is called to be a vicar. A vicar represents Christ.

The bible calls each one of us to go out and BE Christ for others.

Dear friend Neo: many priests get married. It is only roman catholic priests who do not. Our Anglican cousins who are priests get married. Our Lutheran cousins who are priests get married. Our Byzantine brothers who are Catholic get married.

I could go on, but I think you get the point.

Friend Gui: The term "pastor" is also used in Catholicism. While there may be 5 priests at one church only one of those priests is pastor - that is to say the leader of the church.

Answer 7

Pastors are from the Protestant Church
Vicars and priests are Catholics.
A vicar is the chief-priest of a vicarage or parish which may include several priests.
Tonks is also correct

Answer 8

The term Pastor is used in the protestant branch of Christianity. Priests and Vicars are from Catholicism.

Answer 9

I'm not sure about vicars but i know that many pastors can get married, but priests cannot. I think a vicar is more similar to a priest than a pastor, but i'm not too sure about that.

Answer 10

a Pastor is a shepard to the lost...a Vicar is like a leitenant or a person living thru the Pastorship of the Pastor and the Priest is a "sacramental person," or, to put it a different way, a priest is one who administers the sacraments

Answer 11

they preach in different denominations. priest is catholic vicar is Anglican but a pastor could be in any church as Jesus talked about leading his flock that is the job of the pastor ( shepherd)