Archbishop

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An archbishop is a senior bishop in many Christian churches. The title usually means you lead an archdiocese or supervise a group of dioceses in a province. The word comes from Latin and Greek for “chief bishop.”

In the Catholic Church, most archbishops head an archdiocese. Several archdioceses make up a province, led by a metropolitan archbishop who has limited oversight of the other bishops in the province. Some archbishops head a diocese but keep the personal title archbishop (ad personam). Others have a see that is directly subject to the pope. When a bishop retires, he may become archbishop emeritus. In ceremonies, metropolitan archbishops wear the pallium. They are styled The Most Reverend and are often addressed as Your Excellency; in many English-speaking countries they may also be called Your Grace.

In the Anglican Communion, archbishops are also senior bishops. They may lead a province or serve as non-metropolitan archbishops. They are styled The Most Reverend and addressed as Your Grace; retired archbishops may be titled archbishop emeritus in some provinces.

In the Eastern churches—Orthodox, Oriental, and Eastern Catholic—the title exists too. Some archbishops are real leaders with jurisdiction over other bishops; others are honorary and have no authority beyond their own see. The order relative to metropolitans varies by tradition. The term archeparch is used in some Eastern Churches for the equivalent role.

Across traditions, an archbishop is a bishop with higher rank and often broader responsibilities, but the exact powers and titles differ from one church to another.