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The Catholic faith has a hierarchy of priests, bishops, and the pope. The pope is the head, bishops are subordinate, and priests are subordinate to both. Archbishops are bishops who preside over larger areas, but have the same authority. Bishops establish and administer seminaries, and archbishops can exercise limited jurisdiction over suffragans. Archbishops are appointed through the same procedure as bishops and play a crucial role in the church hierarchy.
The Catholic faith is made up of a hierarchy of priests, bishops and the pope. These three positions represent the main divisions, with some distinctions between them. In this hierarchy, the pope is the head of the Catholic Church, the bishops are subordinate to him, and the priests are subordinate to the bishops and the pope. The term “archbishop” simply refers to a bishop who presides over a larger geographic area, such as a large city. As head of a diocese, or archdiocese, the archbishop is entrusted with certain powers and obligations.
The geographic area over which a bishop presides is called a diocese. Dioceses contain smaller areas known as parishes. A priest presides over a parish but answers to the bishop of his diocese. Bishops may also have assistants, called “suffragans”, in their dioceses.
A common misconception about archbishops is that they are one step above regular bishops. This is not true; archbishops have the same position and authority as bishops. The only difference between the two is the size of their jurisdictions. Archbishops typically preside over larger or more politically powerful cities. An archdiocese also does not indicate superiority over a regular diocese but, rather, that the geographic area is larger than average.
Bishops have multiple roles. They are teachers and priests who perform a religious leadership function, but also serve as administrators. One of the most important roles of a bishop is to establish and administer seminaries within the diocese to train future clergy. While an archbishop has no authority over his suffragans in most cases, it is possible for him to exercise limited jurisdiction over them in cases where a suffragan neglects his duty. Archbishops can also acquire jurisdiction over his suffragans if they bring him disputes.
Archbishops are appointed through the same procedure as any bishop. This can be by appointment, by election or, more typically, by direct appointment by the pope. When a priest is selected to become an archbishop, the priest must be consecrated to the position. If someone who is already a bishop is appointed to an archbishopric, he need only be installed in his new position; a new consecration is not necessary.
There are archbishops all over the world. There are also archbishops of religious faiths other than Catholicism. These archbishops function similarly to Catholic archbishops with some differences. Notably, in the Eastern Orthodox Church, there are some autonomous national churches where the archbishop is effectively the head of the church and, therefore, functions much like the pope. There are also archbishops in the Anglican Episcopal Church. These include the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Archbishop of York. Archbishops of the Church of England function in much the same way as archbishops of the Catholic Church.
Archbishops play a crucial role in the church hierarchy. They are often high-profile leaders, due to the importance of the archdioceses they represent. They are to act as good teachers, priests and administrators to guide their priests and followers.
