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idea supposes an episcopal or quasi-episcopal jurisdiction. But gradually the title was extended to ecclesiastical persons having a prominent See also:

OFFICE (from Lat. officium, " duty," " service," a shortened form of opifacium, from facere, " to do," and either the stem of opes, " wealth," " aid," or opus, " work ")

office even without jurisdiction, and later still it has come to be applied to ecclesiastical persons marked by some See also:

SPECIAL

special See also:

HONOUR (Lat. honos or lwnor, honoris; in English the word was spelled with or without the u indifferently until the 17th century, but during the 18th century it became fashion-able to spell the word " honor "; Johnson's and Webster's Dictionaries stereoty

honour though without any definite office or jurisdiction. We may therefore distinguish " true " from " titular " prelates. The true prelacy is composed of the persons who constitute the ecclesiastical See also:

HIERARCHY (Gr. iepos, holy, and apxe.v, to rule)

hierarchy; jurisdiction is inherent in their office and gives pre-eminence, as with patriarchs, See also:

arch-bishops and bishops. A See also:

GOOD, JOHN MASON (1764-1827)

good example of the dependence of prelacy on jurisdiction is found in those religious orders, such as the See also:

DOMINICANS

Dominicans, where authority is strictly elective and temporary. Thus a Dominican See also:

prior ranks ipso facto as a prelate during his three years of office, but, if not re-elected, loses this dignity with his jurisdiction.

The true, no less than the titular, prelates have their various ranks, differing as regards title, See also:

PRECEDENCE (from Lat. praecedere, to go before, precede)

precedence, clothing and other insignia. The distinguishing See also:

COLOUR (Lat. color, connected with celare, to hide, the root meaning, therefore, being that of a covering)

colour of a prelate's clothing is See also:

VIOLET

violet; the See also:

FORM (Lat. forma)

form, like the greater or less use of violet, depends on the rank of the prelate. Four classes may be distinguished: (I) See also:

GREAT

Great prelates, e.g. cardinals, archbishops and bishops. (2) Exempt prelates (praelati nullius dioeceseos, praelati nullius), i.e. abbots and religious superiors, who are withdrawn from the ordinary diocesan jurisdiction and themselves possess episcopaljurisdiction (jurisdictio quasi episcopalis). (3) Roman prelates, (a) active and (b) honorary. The title is applied to numerous ecclesiastics attached by some dignity, active or honorary, to the Roman See also:

court (see See also:

CURIA

CURIA See also:

ROMANA

ROMANA). In the See also:

list of these prelates are protonotaries apostolic, domestic prelates, private chamberlains, participanti and supernumerary. Of these last there are two kinds, honorary and honorary extra urbem. Only protonotaries and domestic prelates are for See also:

LIFE

life; the others lose their dignity at the See also:

DEATH

death of the See also:

pope who appointed them. A special class of Roman prelatures exist at See also:

Rome, endowed as a See also:

KIND (O. E. ge-cynde, from the same root as is seen in " kin," supra)

kind of ecclesiastical See also:

MAJORITY (Fr. majorite; Med. Lat. majoritas; Lat. major, greater)

majority to which those members of certain families who are destined for the clerical life naturally succeed. In the reformed churches the title was retained in See also:

England, See also:

Sweden, See also:

Denmark and See also:

Germany. The cathedral See also:

CHAPTER (a shortened form of chapiter, a word still used in architecture for a capital; derived from O. Fr. chapitre, Lat. capitellum, diminutive of caput, head)

chapter of See also:

BRANDENBURG

Brandenburg consists of two prelates, the See also:

dean and the See also:

SENIOR, NASSAU WILLIAM (1790-1864)

senior, besides eight other members.

The chapter of See also:

MERSEBURG

Merseburg contains five prelates, viz. the dean, senior, See also:

PROVOST (through O. Fr. prevost, mod. prevot, Lat. praepositus, set over, from praeponere, to place in front)

provost, custos and scholasticus. In See also:

Baden the general See also:

synod is presided over by the prelate (prelat), i.e. the See also:

PRINCIPAL

principal " See also:

SUPERINTENDENT

superintendent." In the Church of England the term prelate has been since the See also:

Reformation applied only to archbishops and bishops. The word " prelacy," meaning no more originally than the office and dignity of a prelate, came to be applied in Presbyterian See also:

Scotland and Puritan England—especially during the 17th century—to the episcopal form of church See also:

government, being used in a derogatory sense. See Du Cange, Glossarium mediae et infimae latinitatis (new ed., by L. See also:

Favre, See also:

NIORT

Niort, 1883) ; See also:

Paul See also:

HINSCHIUS, PAUL (1835–1898)

Hinschius, Kirchenrecht (See also:

Berlin, 1869) ; F. H. Vering, See also:

PROFESSOR (the Latin noun formed from the verb profiteri, to declare publicly, to acknowledge, profess)

professor of See also:

law at See also:

PRAGUE (Ger. Prag; Bohemian Praha)

Prague, Lehrbuch See also:

des katholischen, orientalischen and protestantischen Kirchenrechts (1893). (E.

End of Article: PRELATE (Lat. praelatus, set above, from praefero, prefer)

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