Lay preacher is a

preacher A preacher is a person who delivers sermons or homilies on religious topics to an assembly of people. Less common are preachers who preach on the street, or those whose message is not necessarily religious, but who preach components such as a ...

or a religious proclaimer who is not a formally ordained

cleric Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

and who does not hold a formal university degree in

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

. Lay preaching varies in importance between religions and their sects. Although lay preachers in many

Christian denomination A Christian denomination is a distinct religious body within Christianity that comprises all church congregations of the same kind, identifiable by traits such as a name, particular history, organization, leadership, theological doctrine, worsh ...

s may be accorded titles such as

Reverend The Reverend is an style (manner of address), honorific style most often placed before the names of Christian clergy and Minister of religion, ministers. There are sometimes differences in the way the style is used in different countries and c ...

Pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

as a courtesy by people – including those in their congregation – it is only once a priest, cleric, minister or reverend has been

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform va ...

that he/she can correctly adopt that title. Movements which encourage lay preachership include: * Awakening (Lutheran movement, especially see

Hans Nielsen Hauge Hans Nielsen Hauge (3 April 1771 – 29 March 1824) was a 19th-century Norwegian Lutheran lay minister, spiritual leader, business entrepreneur, social reformer and author. He led a noted Pietism revival known as the Haugean movement. Hauge is als ...

, Paavo Ruotsalainen, and lay preachers organized by Lars Levi Laestadius) *

Methodist local preacher A Methodist local preacher, also known as a licensed preacher, is a layperson who has been accredited by the Methodist Church to lead worship and preach on a frequent basis. With separation from the Church of England by the end of the 18th century ...

Lay speaker A lay speaker is a position in the United Methodist Church for the laity. Technically, a lay speaker is a “member of a local church … who is ready … to serve the Church.” Generally, lay speakers are leaders in the United Methodist Church ...

(United Methodist Church) *

Lay reader In Anglicanism, a licensed lay minister (LLM) or lay reader (in some jurisdictions simply reader) is a person authorised by a bishop to lead certain services of worship (or parts of the service), to preach and to carry out pastoral and teaching ...

(Anglican communion) * Plymouth Brethren *

Lay ecclesial ministry Lay ecclesial ministry is the term adopted by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops to identify the relatively new category of pastoral ministers in the Catholic Church who serve the Church but are not ordained. Lay ecclesial ministers ...

(Catholic), see also

Bo Sanchez Eugenio Isabelo Tomas Reyes Sanchez Jr. (born July 11, 1966), or widely known as Bo Sanchez, is a Filipino author, entrepreneur, Catholic lay preacher, motivational speaker and minister. He is known as the "Preacher in Blue Jeans" and the fou ...

and

Hippolytus Guarinonius Hippolytus Guarinonius (18 November 1571 – 31 May 1654) was a Tridentine physician and polymath who spent most of his life in Hall in Tirol. He represented a militant strand of Catholicism and was instrumental in the building of the St Charles ...

United Reformed Church The United Reformed Church (URC) is a Protestant Christian church in the United Kingdom. As of 2022 it has approximately 40,000 members in 1,284 congregations with 334 stipendiary ministers. Origins and history The United Reformed Church resulte ...

(England) * Unitarian & Free Christian Accredited Lay Preacher (Great Britain)

References

Religious occupations Religious terminology Christian religious leaders {{reli-stub

See also

References