Some Issues in Clergy Authority
The question of clergy authority, which has received relatively limited attention among sociologists, is often at the root of many of the dilemmas experienced by contemporary clergy and laity. This paper focuses on four aspects of clergy authority, treated as variables, in an effort to highlight imp...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Springer
1981
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| In: |
Review of religious research
Year: 1981, Volume: 23, Issue: 2, Pages: 99-117 |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Parallel Edition: | Non-electronic
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| Summary: | The question of clergy authority, which has received relatively limited attention among sociologists, is often at the root of many of the dilemmas experienced by contemporary clergy and laity. This paper focuses on four aspects of clergy authority, treated as variables, in an effort to highlight important issues in the clergy role, including changes over time. Authority is defined as legitimate power that arises and is maintained only in a sociocultural matrix. The four aspects of authority considered are: (1) the bases of clergy authority, as representative of the sacred and/or as possessor of expertise; (2) the degree of institutionalization, or whether the clergy's authority is personal authority or office authority; (3) the scope of clergy authority, which refers to the breadth or narrowness of functions for which clergy have authority; and (4) the relational dimension, or the degree of symmetry/asymmetry that exists in the patterning of clergy-lay relations with respect to authority. Illustrations of the significance for clergy functioning of each of the four aspects are given, and, when possible, relationships between the four aspects are suggested. |
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| ISSN: | 2211-4866 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Review of religious research
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.2307/3511922 |