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His Eminence (abbreviation H.Em. or HE) is a style of reference for high nobility, still in use in various religious contexts.
The style remains in use as the official style or standard form of address in reference to a cardinal of the Catholic Church, reflecting his status as a Prince of the Church.
A longer, and more formal, title is "His (or Your when addressing the cardinal directly) Most Reverend Eminence". [a]
Patriarchs of Eastern Catholic Churches who are also cardinals may be addressed as "His Eminence" or by the style particular to Catholic patriarchs, His Beatitude.
When the Grand Master of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, the head of state of their sovereign territorial state comprising the island of Malta until 1797, who had already been made a Reichsfürst (i.e., prince of the Holy Roman Empire) in 1607, became (in terms of honorary order of precedence, not in the actual church hierarchy of ordained ministers) the most senior official after the most junior member of the cardinals in 1630, he was also awarded the hybrid style His Most Eminent Highness (abbreviation HMEH) to recognize his status as a type of Prince of the Church. [1]
The Prince and Grand Master of the contemporary Sovereign Military Order of Malta is still styled His Most Eminent Highness. Styles such as "His Grand Eminence" or "His Eminent Grace" amongst others were used as well, some formalized by the pope or other powers, such as monarchs. However, many others were simply the personal preference of the cardinal and by the merit of other earthly offices.
While the term is shunned by many individuals of other faiths or denominations of Christianity, the title is officially maintained in international diplomacy without regard for its doctrinal, philosophical and theological origins.
Archbishops under the Ecumenical Patriarchate and metropolitans in the Eastern Orthodox Church are addressed with the style of "Eminence". [2] Archbishops of independent churches are addressed with the style of "Beatitude". Titular metropolitans are addressed with the style of "Excellency".
The Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople and the Metropolitan Bishop of Thessaloniki are styled "His All-Holiness". The patriarchs of Alexandria, Antiochia and Jerusalem, as well as the Serbian, Bulgarian and Russian patriarchs are referred to as "His Holiness", while Romanian Patriarchs are referred to as "His Beatitude". The patriarch of the Georgian Orthodox Church is a unique exception, being addressed as "His Holiness and Beatitude".
In Oriental Orthodoxy, bishops holding the rank of metropolitan are referred to as "His Eminence".
In Syriac Orthodox Church the Catholicose of India who is also the Maphrian of the East is referred to as "His Beatitude Catholicose".
In the Philippine Independent Church, an Independent Catholic denomination with Anglo-Catholic [3] orientation, the supreme bishops, who are the church's head primates, are referred to as "His Eminence" and "Your Eminence" in their official form of address or style.
In Tibetan Buddhism and Bön, His Eminence/Your Eminence is the English translation of several Tibetan titles (e.g., Khentin) which signify associate lineage holders and regents of lineages. If the lineage holder of any particular lineage is referred to in English as His Holiness, then the teachers immediately subordinate will usually be accorded the English title His Eminence. For example, in the Karma Kagyu, His Holiness the 16th Gyalwa Karmapa had 4 principal disciples who held regency until the enthronement of the 17th Karmapa. Each of these 4 high lamas hold/held the title His Eminence. In the Southern Drukpa Kagyu in Bhutan, the Five Lopons of the Zhung Dratshang are styled "Their Eminences".
It is also used, often informally (perhaps as a rendering of an oriental style), in Islam for highly honorable religious leaders. For example, an Ayatollah or Marja' in Shia, Imam of the Sunni Barelwi school of thought, Grand Master of the Murjite Order, [4] Moulana Syed Madani Mia, is often addressed with this title, along with individuals such as Moulana Khushtar Siddiqi of Mauritius, although these titles are, in essence, unofficial. Beyond this, the traditional rulers of the sub-national states of the Fulani, Hausa, Nupe and Kanuri peoples of Nigeria use the style as an alternative to the HRH style that is usually used by the country's royal monarchs, highlighting by so doing their positions as spiritual as well as temporal leaders. The Lord of the Rasulid Order is styled His Most Eminent Royal Highness (abbreviated HMERH). [5]
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 terms used for individual clergy are clergyman, clergywoman, clergyperson, churchman, cleric, ecclesiastic, and vicegerent while clerk in holy orders has a long history but is rarely used.
Bartholomew is the 270th Archbishop of Constantinople and Ecumenical Patriarch, since 2 November 1991. In accordance with his title, he is regarded as the primus inter pares in the Eastern Orthodox Church, and as a spiritual leader of the Eastern Orthodox Christians worldwide.
The Reverend is an honorific style given before the names of certain Christian clergy and ministers. There are sometimes differences in the way the style is used in different countries and church traditions. The Reverend is correctly called a style, but is sometimes referred to as a title, form of address, or title of respect. The style is also sometimes used by leaders in other religions such as Judaism and Buddhism.
A style of office or form of address, also called manner of address, is an official or legally recognized form of address for a person or other entity, and may often be used in conjunction with a personal title. A style, by tradition or law, precedes a reference to a person who holds a post or political office, and is sometimes used to refer to the office itself. An honorific can also be awarded to an individual in a personal capacity. Such styles are particularly associated with monarchies, where they may be used by a wife of an office holder or of a prince of the blood, for the duration of their marriage. They are also almost universally used for presidents in republics and in many countries for members of legislative bodies, higher-ranking judges, and senior constitutional office holders. Leading religious figures also have styles.
Excellency is an honorific style given to certain high-level officers of a sovereign state, officials of an international organization, or members of an aristocracy. Once entitled to the title "Excellency", the holder usually retains the right to that courtesy throughout their lifetime, although in some cases the title is attached to a particular office and is held only during tenure of that office.
The Shamarpa, also known as Shamar Rinpoche, or more formally Künzig Shamar Rinpoche, is the second oldest lineage of tulkus. He is one of the highest lineage holders of the Karma Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism and is regarded as the mind manifestation of Amitābha. He is traditionally associated with Yangpachen Monastery near Lhasa.
In Christianity, a minister is a person authorised by a church or other religious organization to perform functions such as teaching of beliefs; leading services such as weddings, baptisms or funerals; or otherwise providing spiritual guidance to the community. The term is taken from Latin minister. In some church traditions the term is usually used for people who have been ordained, but in other traditions it can also be used for non-ordained.
In the English language, an honorific is a form of address conveying esteem, courtesy or respect. These can be titles prefixing a person's name, e.g.: Mr, Mrs, Miss, Ms, Mx, Sir, Dame, Dr, Cllr, Lady, or Lord, or other titles or positions that can appear as a form of address without the person's name, as in Mr President, General, Captain, Father, Doctor, or Earl.
The title His Holiness is an official title or style referring to leaders in a number of religious traditions. It is used to refer to the Pope in Catholicism; this use can be traced back several hundred years. It is also an official title for Oriental Orthodox patriarchs. It is used to refer to religious leaders in Islam, Buddhism, and Bon. Buddhist leaders referred to this way include the Dalai Lama, the Menri Trizin, and Da'i al-Mutlaq of the Dawoodi Bohras, among others.
The hierarchy of the Catholic Church consists of its bishops, priests, and deacons. In the ecclesiological sense of the term, "hierarchy" strictly means the "holy ordering" of the church, the Body of Christ, so to respect the diversity of gifts and ministries necessary for genuine unity.
His Grace and Her Grace are English styles of address used with high rank personages, and was the style used to address English monarchs until Henry VIII, and for addressing Scottish monarchs until the Act of Union of 1707, which united the Kingdom of Scotland and the Kingdom of England.
Ecclesiastical titles are the formal styles of address used for members of the clergy.
Metropolitan Mefodiy was the Primate of the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church, Metropolitan of Kyiv and all Ukraine.
A papal name or pontificial name is the regnal name taken by a pope. Both the head of the Catholic Church, usually known as the pope, and the pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria choose papal names. As of 2013, Pope Francis is the Catholic pope, and Tawadros II or Theodoros II is the Coptic pope. This article discusses and lists the names of Catholic popes; another article has a list of Coptic Orthodox popes of Alexandria.
The Catholicos of India also known as the Catholicos of the East, is an ecclesiastical office within the Syriac Orthodox Church. He is the Catholicos, spiritual leader and regional head of the Jacobite Syrian Christian Church, an Indian archdiocese of the Syriac Orthodox Church, functioning within the Church at an ecclesiastical-rank second to the Syriac Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch, and his name is commemorated in liturgy throughout the Syriac Orthodox Archdioceses in India. The position was renamed as Catholicos of India in 2002, in accordance with its actual jurisdiction.
Catholicos of the East is the title that has been held by the ecclesiastical heads of the Church of the East, the Grand Metropolitan of Seleucia-Ctesiphon, since AD. 280.
The orders, decorations, and medals of the Holy See include titles, chivalric orders, distinctions and medals honoured by the Holy See, with the Pope as the fount of honour, for deeds and merits of their recipients to the benefit of the Holy See, the Catholic Church, or their respective communities, societies, nations and the world at large.
Pierbattista Pizzaballa is an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church who has been the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem since 6 November 2020. A Franciscan friar, he served as Custos of the Holy Land from 2004 to 2016, Apostolic Administrator of the Latin Patriarchate from 2016 to 2020, and was made a cardinal by Pope Francis on 30 September 2023.
| Catholic Church | Style |
|---|---|
| Pope | His Holiness |
| Cardinal | His Eminence |
| Bishop | His Excellency |