Dictionary Definition
officiant n : a clergyman who officiates at a
religious ceremony or service
User Contributed Dictionary
English
See also
French
Verb
officiantExtensive Definition
An officiant is someone who officiates at (i.e.
leads) a service or ceremony, such as marriage, burial, or namegiving/baptism. Officiants may be
ordained by any denomination as members of their clergy, or by
secular/Humanist or Interfaith/Interspiritual religious bodies.
Officiants differ from Chaplains in that
Officiants serve the unaffiliated public at large, while Chaplains
are usually employed by an institution such as the military, a
hospital or other health care facility, etc. The term "Officiant"
also includes Justices
of the Peace, celebrants, notaries, and other people
empowered by law to perform legally-binding private
ceremonies.
Ordination is a requirement in a number of
jurisdictions to
officiate at weddings,
but each state, province and country has their own laws. In places
where ordination is not required by secular law, it is left to the requirements
of the particular religious
denomination or church whether ordination is
required.
Some Officiants work within congregations in some
denominations as non-ordained members on the Clergy team. While an
officiant or celebrant
at a sacrament must be
ordained, the same is
not true of an officiant at other services. Duties of an officiant
leading congregational worship vary among denominations. A common
duty is to give the congregation cues when to bow during the
doxology, to read from
Scripture, and to
call general prayers, e.g.,
- Officiant: In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of
the Holy Spirit.
- All: Amen.
- etc....
- All: Amen.
References
officiant in Swedish:
Officiant