Pontiff or Pontificate was a title of certain religious leaders, now used principally to refer to the Pope. History See also History of the Papacy Catholics recognize the Pope as a successor to Saint Peter, who Jesus named as the "shepherd" and
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Etymology
The term derives from the French word pontife, from the Latin pontifex, a title used for high priests of the Roman Empire. French ( français,) is a Romance language spoken around the world by 118 million people as a native language and by about 180 to 260 million people Latin ( lingua Latīna, laˈtiːna is an Italic language, historically spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. The Roman Empire was the post-Republican phase of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial The word pontifex is commonly held to derive from the Latin root words pons, "bridge" + facere, "to do" or "to make", with a literal meaning of "bridge-builder". This, however, is disputed - it may be only a folk etymology. [1] See Pontifex Maximus for more details on the original Roman term. The Pontifex Maximus was the high priest of the Ancient Roman College of Pontiffs.
Usage in the Catholic Church
Pontiffs were originally simply chiefs or high priests of any religion; thus writers from the 16th through to the 18th centuries referred equally to Christian pontiffs (bishops) and "Mahometan [Muslim] Pontiffs" (caliphs) or Swami ( Hindu ). A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight A Muslim (مسلم pronounced Muslim, not Muzlim) is an adherent of the Religion The Caliph is the Head of state in a Caliphate, and the title for the leader of the Islamic Ummah, an Islamic community ruled by the Shari'ah Swami (Sw (स्वामी Svāmi, IPA:) is primarily a Hindu honorific title for either males or females Over time, however, the term became associated with the highest religious authority in the Catholic Church — the Pope. It is often modified by an adjective - for instance, "Supreme Pontiff", "Sovereign Pontiff", "Roman Pontiff" - to distinguish the Pope from "ordinary" pontiffs. History See also History of the Papacy Catholics recognize the Pope as a successor to Saint Peter, who Jesus named as the "shepherd" and [1]
In the modern era, the modifying adjective is usually dropped, with the term being used exclusively to refer to the Pope, as in "The Pope visited Cuba in 1998, the first visit by a reigning pontiff to the island. "
References
See also
History See also History of the Papacy Catholics recognize the Pope as a successor to Saint Peter, who Jesus named as the "shepherd" and The Pontifex Maximus was the high priest of the Ancient Roman College of Pontiffs. The primacy of the Roman Pontiff is the apostolic authority of the Pope ( Bishop of Rome) from the Holy See, over the several churchesDapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic