ministryn.
/ˈmɪnᵻstri/, U.S. /ˈmɪnəstri/ I. The function of a minister, and related senses.† 3. An act of ministration, a task or service; a function, role, or office. Obsolete.† 4. The condition or fact of being an agent or instrument; one's conduct in such a role. Also: agency, instrumentality. Cf. ministration n. 4. Obsolete.
1. In ecclesiastical use.
a. The action or an act of religious ministration; the spiritual work or service of a minister, priest, etc. (frequently in the ministry of the word). Occasionally: spec. the administration of the sacraments.
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > subjection > service > [noun] > a service > kind of
ministrya1225
a1225 (c1200) Vices & Virtues (1888) 7 (MED) Sume læted wel of hem seluen, ȝif hie bieð of heiȝe kenne, oðer ȝif he bie of heiȝe menstre.
c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Coloss. iv. 17 Se the mynisterie that thou hast takun of the Lord, that thou fulfille it.
?a1475 (?a1425) tr. R. Higden Polychron. (Harl. 2261) (1872) IV. 405 Seynte Petyr ordeynede ij bischoppes other ij. helperes..to fullefille the ministery off pristes to the peple.
c1475 (?c1400) Apol. Lollard Doctr. (1842) 32 (MED) It semiþ þat God enioniþ to doctors and dekunis þe minstri of presthed and of dekunhed.
1549 Bk. Common Prayer (STC 16267) Svpper of the Lorde f. cxxj The Priest that shal execute the holy ministery, shall put vpon hym the vesture appoincted for that ministracion.
1581 J. Marbeck Bk. Notes & Common Places 602 In the Baptime, the outward ministerie or mysticall washing doth regenerate.
1582 Bible (Rheims) Acts vi. 4 But we wil be instant in praier and the ministerie of the word.
1612 T. Wilson Christian Dict. To Prophesie sig[nifieth]..to bee present at the publicke ministry, and partake in the Doctrine thereof.
1641 J. Milton Reason Church-govt. 48 The heavenly ministery of the Evangel.
1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost vii. 149 This high Temple to frequent With Ministeries due and solemn Rites. View more context for this quotation
1705 R. Nelson Compan. Festivals & Fasts (ed. 3) i. xi. 133 Whereas the other Apostles chose this or that Province as the main Sphere of their Ministry, St. Paul over-ran as it were the whole Roman Empire.
1776 A. Smith Inq. Wealth of Nations II. v. i. 377 Individuals, who..find benefit or consolation from their [sc. ecclesiastics'] spiritual ministry and assistance. View more context for this quotation
1821 J. Bunting in R. Treffry Mem. J. Benson (1840) 344 His ministry was scriptural; not metaphysically subtile, nor modishly sentimental.
1868 W. B. Marriott (title) The origin and gradual development of the dress of holy ministry in the Church.
1887 Bible (Revised Version) Acts vi. 4 But we will continue stedfastly in prayer, and in the ministry of the word.
1910 Catholic Encycl. VII. 643/1 Leaving no time for those works of the active ministry which in themselves he much preferred.
1927 Abp. R. Davidson Addr. Convoc. 29 Mar. in Church Times 1 Apr. 392/1 Right Reverend and Reverend Brothers in the Sacred Ministry of Word and Sacrament.
1987 Lancaster Guardian 2 Oct. 8/8 An annual Eucharist to celebrate the ministry of women was held last Friday at Lancaster Priory.
b. The profession or vocation of a minister of religion; the position, post, or office of such a minister. Also: the period of tenure of a particular minister.
ΘΚΠ
society > faith > church government > member of the clergy > [noun] > office of
clergyc1440
clerkhoodc1449
clerkship?1488
ministration1550
ministry1560
clergyship1620
clericality1660
cassock1687
churchmanship1690
the cloth1709
clericature1725
clericate1869
society > faith > church government > member of the clergy > [noun] > service of
servicec1384
church servicea1400
ministration1535
ministry1560
ministering1566
ministerialism1884
1560 J. Knox Bk. Common Order (1901) 20 The crimes and vices that might unable them of the Ministry.
1580 in D. Masson Reg. Privy Council Scotl. (1880) 1st Ser. III. 334 His charge and cure of..minstrie at the said kirk..mon be left of.
1588 J. Udall Demonstr. Trueth of Discipline ii. 17 A minister ought not be ordained before there be a ministery whervnto he is to be allotted.
1623 N. Rogers Strange Vineyard 168 Many who haue heard the Word with thee, beene of the same Parish, vnder the same Ministery.
1637 R. Baillie Lett. & Jrnls. (1841) I. 6 He..is speaking of dimitting his ministrie, and retireing to his own lairdshipe.
1673 in J. M. Beale Hist. Burgh & Parochial Schools Fife (Ph.D. thesis, Univ. of Edinb.) (1953) 182 Since he entered to his studies of the ministrie.
1717 R. Wodrow Corr. (1843) II. 327 The coming in by this door..is..a proof of..sinistrous designs in entering upon the holy office of the ministry.
1728 E. Chambers Cycl. at Acoluth Among Ecclesiastical Writers, the Term Acolythes, is peculiarly applied to those young People, who, in the primitive Times, aspir'd to the Ministry.
1782 J. H. St. J. de Crèvecoeur Lett. from Amer. Farmer i. 12 When I first entered into the ministry and began to preach the word.
1823 W. Scott St. Ronan's Well II. iii. 64 A weak constitution..induced his parents..to educate him for the ministry.
1845 S. Austin tr. L. von Ranke Hist. Reformation in Germany (ed. 2) II. 37 He was reproached with having intruded himself uncalled into the ministry.
1879 ‘G. Eliot’ Theophrastus Such ii. 50 The roofs that have looked out..below the square stone steeple, gathering their..olive-green mosses under all ministries.
1900 Daily News 11 Dec. 11/3 The Rev. A. B. has retired from the ministry of the M—Congregational Church.
1977 K. M. E. Murray Caught in Web of Words (1979) iv. 84 After ordination he had to give up his ministry through ill-health.
1984 D. Cupitt Sea of Faith iv. 102 Being intended for the ministry he entered Strasburg University to study theology and philosophy.
c. The ministers of a particular church or religious community regarded collectively; the clergy.
ΘΚΠ
society > faith > church government > member of the clergy > [noun] > collective
clergyc1275
clerkshipc1275
churchc1400
spiritualtya1402
spiritualc1410
spritualitya1450
spirituality1525
spiritalty1534
ministry1566
cloth1656
crape1682
clericalty1860
1566 Bk. Discipline in J. Knox Wks. (1848) II. 236 The office of the Deaconis..is to receave the rentis, and gadder the almous of the Churche, to keip and distribute the same, as by the ministerie of the Kirk [1621 ministers and kirk] shall be appointed.
a1578 R. Lindsay Hist. & Cron. Scotl. (1899) II. 315 The maist pairt of the nobilitie and ministrie var in Edinburgh.
1604 E. Grimeston tr. J. de Acosta Nat. & Morall Hist. Indies v. xiii. 364 There were in them [sc. temples] places for the ministerie, colleges, schooles, and houses for priests.
1679 R. South Serm. Several Occasions 3 We have Christ consulting the propagation of the Gospell;..sending forth a Ministery; and giving them a Commission.
1725 in Portland Papers (Hist. MSS Comm.) VI. 116 This staging process is made use of against any of the ministry..when..there is a Fama Clamoza against any person.
1820 J. Milner Suppl. Mem. Eng. Catholics ii. 132 To prevent the virtual choice of a Catholic Bishop by an A-Catholic Ministry.
1848 A. Thomson Orig. Secession Church 164 Patronage..was the most effective instrument of placing a hireling ministry in the pulpits of Scotland.
1889 Harper's Mag. Aug. 440/2 The ranks of the ministry have been momentarily swelled by all those whom the seductive conquest of millions has left perplexed or undeceived.
1963 Times 13 June 8/6 As long as we have a..laity who..don't want to be shaken out of their complacency, so long will the ministry remain a reflection of the body of laity from which they came.
1991 S. Arterburn & J. Felton Toxic Faith vi. 185 The pastor felt that John had gone too far, that he was trying to undermine the ministry.
2. gen. The action of ministering; ministration; the performance of an office or service, esp. for another. Now rare.In quot. 1408 ‘of his ministrie’ appears to mean ‘in his service’.
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > subjection > service > [noun] > action of serving
ministrationc1384
ministryc1384
servingc1400
tendinga1616
administration1676
ministering1828
c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Ezek. xliv. 14 I shal ȝeue hem porters of the hous, in al the mynysterie therof.
1408 Charter Edinb. Reg. House No. 221 We consent nocht to bynde na sic cause to nane enquest to be ressaivit befor the duc ne nane of his ministrie.
c1443 R. Pecock Reule of Crysten Religioun (1927) 492 (MED) Martha made hir bisi aboute woned seruyce..sche vside þe same mynisterie or seruyce..which an heþen persoon is woned to do worldli and curteisly.
a1500 tr. Thomas à Kempis De Imitatione Christi (Trin. Dublin) (1893) 78 Þou hast ordeined also angels in to mannys mynistery.
a1530 W. Bonde Pylgrimage of Perfeccyon (1531) f. 257v More pleasaunt was to hym ye poore seruyce of his mortall creatures, than shold haue ben ye gloryous mynystery of aungels.
a1575 N. Harpsfield Treat. Divorce Henry VIII (1878) (modernized text) 245 That woman doth not pertain to matrimony with whom..there was no matrimonial ministry.
1576 A. Fleming tr. Erasmus in Panoplie Epist. 354 The Oxe is a fellowe labourer with his maister,..so that wee finde speciall benefites redounding to vs, by and through the vse of their ministerie.
1686 J. Scott Christian Life: Pt. II II. 1021 Another of those Ministries which Princes are obliged to render his [sc. Christ's] Church is to Chasten and Correct the irregular and disorderly Members of it.
1750 J. Mayhew Disc. Submission Some of them, during the public ministry of our blessed Saviour, came to Him with that question.
1777 W. Robertson Hist. Amer. (1778) II. v. 112 People who were unacquainted with the ministry of domestic animals, or the aid of machines, to facilitate any work of labour.
1816 M. Holford Margaret of Anjou v. 130 Thus proud, old Maudlin's eye survey'd, Beneath her ministry, the maid Her sex's garb,..Her own rose-tinted hue and lovely form assume!
1847 C. Brontë Jane Eyre III. xi. 297 I preferred utter loneliness to the constant attendance of servants; but Jane's soft ministry will be a perpetual joy.
1892 Tennyson in Mem. (1897) II. 421 My idea of heaven is the perpetual ministry of one soul to another.
1902 E. H. Hickey Our Lady of May xvi. 36 Art Thou no more her Son, henceforth no more? All love's tender ministry past and o'er?
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > position or job > [noun]
steadc1000
noteOE
officec1300
ministry?a1475
rooma1485
placea1500
roomth1544
place1558
post1562
berth1720
situation1766
job1781
sit1853
spot1859
billet1870
engagement1884
shop1885
gig1908
lurk1916
possie1916
number1928
site1930
sits vac1945
hat1966
the world > action or operation > advantage > usefulness > [noun] > a mode or kind of usefulness
ministry?a1475
?a1475 (?a1425) tr. R. Higden Polychron. (Harl. 2261) (1871) III. 461 Whiche suppose benefites grauntede to vs for necessites as thynges grevous, seyenge þe ministerys of artes as wickede thynges, destroyenge at the laste the lawes off lyvynge.
1546 T. Langley tr. P. Vergil Abridgem. Notable Worke Pref. 5 They that have excogitated..any..handy craftes or ministeries to the maintenance, aid and comfort of the Body.
1553 J. Bale Vocacyon sig. 9v From the shippe, from ye costomehowse, & from other homily ministerys, called he not ye stought, sturdye & heady sort of men.
1644 J. Milton Areopagitica 37 It is not possible for man to sever the wheat from the tares..; that must be the Angels Ministery at the end of mortall things.
1656 A. Cowley Davideis ii. 70 (note) in Poems The daughters of Cocalus washt Minos at his arrival in Sicilie. But the more ordinary, was to have young and beautiful servants for this and the like ministeries.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > advantage > usefulness > use (made of things) > instrumentality > [noun]
ministration1495
moyena1578
ministry1581
agency1625
instrumentalness1632
instrumentality1646
instrumency1652
canal1722
instrumentation1841
society > authority > rule or government > [noun] > action or act of
ruling?c1225
governingc1384
governancec1400
government?c1400
gubernationc1450
regence?1457
regencya1475
subjectionc1475
regimenc1485
administration1516
signorizing1588
ministry1700
1581 W. Lambarde Eirenarcha i. v. 28 Al Iustices of the Peace..be ordained by the meane of the grete Seale, and ministerie of the L. Chauncelour.
1673 W. Cave Primitive Christianity iii. ii. 264 Not by the Ministery of her servants..but with her own hands.
1700 J. Tyrrell Gen. Hist. Eng. II. 894 The Kingdom..felt the Effects of their ill Ministery.
1705 F. Atterbury Serm. St. James's Chapel 29 The Ordinary Ministry of Second Causes.
a1718 T. Parnell Hermit (1751) 231 'Twas my Ministry to deal the Blow.
1753 T. Smollett Ferdinand Count Fathom I. xvii. 103 Her atchievement..not only recommended her ministry, but also gratified her malice.
1817 S. T. Coleridge Biogr. Lit. (1882) xii. 120 This becomes intelligible to no man by the ministry of mere words from without.
a1890 A. Phelps My Note-bk. (1891) i. 24 Heroic believers become such by the ministry of heroic pains.
5.
a. The body of ministers responsible for the administration of a country or state; the members of such a body regarded collectively.In the late 18th cent. often used without article to denote the British government.
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > rule or government > ruler or governor > a or the government > [noun] > a particular government or the administration
governmenta1544
administration1649
ministry1710
All the Virtues1869
1710 J. Swift Jrnl. to Stella 30 Nov. (1948) I. 108 But, to say the truth, the present ministry have a difficult task, and want me, & c.
1722 B. Franklin Silence Dogood, No. 8 9 July in Papers (1959) I. 27 His [sc. Charles the First's] wicked Ministry procured a Proclamation, to forbid the People to talk of Parliaments.
1775 E. Burke Speech Amer. Taxation 34 If, Sir, the conduct of ministry..had arisen from timidity.., it would have been greatly to be condemned.
1779 J. Wilkes Corr. (1805) V. 213 You told him, that you had voted with ministry as long as any man of honour could.
1797 E. Burke Third Let. Peace Regicide Directory France 61 The Parliament has assented to Ministry; it is not ministry that has obeyed the impulse of Parliament.
1827 H. Hallam Constit. Hist. Eng. II. xvi. 617 We owe to this ministry the place-bill of 1743.
a1859 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. (1861) V. xxiv. 124 The date from which the era of ministries may most properly be reckoned is the day of the meeting of the Parliament after the general election of 1695.
1865 Ld. Iddesleigh Lect. & Ess. (1887) 251 The Cabal Ministry were in power.
1879 J. McCarthy Hist. our Own Times II. xxiii. 186 Their existence as a Ministry was only a question of days.
1920 W. F. Monypenny & G. E. Buckle Life Disraeli V. viii. 293 Hardy describes Disraeli during the process of ministry making as in a whirl.
1940 Economist 20 July 70/1 Admiral Yonai's Ministry was brought down by the Army simply on the grounds of ‘insufficient dynamism’.
1991 German Hist. 9 280 When a ministry resigned, it was the custom in the Prussian National Assembly for its leader to be given the floor for his swan-song.
b. The period of office of a government or a government minister.
ΚΠ
a1832 J. Bentham Fragm. on Govt. Pref. to ed. 2, in Wks. (1843) I. 250/2 When the patron became Minister, an indemnity..was given to the protegé. During his ministry, the patron occupied the villa at Streatham.
1910 Encycl. Brit. I. 650/1 The negotiaions of Sanson Napollon during the ministry of Richelieu.
1991 Parl. Hist. 10 186 Beresford remained chief whip until 1852, when he became secretary-at-war in the short-lived Derby ministry.
c. Frequently in form Ministry. A government department headed by a minister; a departmental minister together with his or her associated staff; the building occupied by a government department.Frequently with modifying word, either preceding, or following after of. Cf. minister n. 6.
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > rule or government > ruler or governor > a or the government > government department or agency > [noun] > a ministry in British government
ministry1841
MAFF1957
society > authority > rule or government > ruler or governor > a or the government > government department or agency > [noun] > a ministry in British government > in foreign governments
ministry1841
1841 Penny Cycl. XX. 264/2 The administration..is conducted by the..Ministry of foreign affairs, Ministry of interior affairs, or home department [etc.].
1877 D. M. Wallace Russia (ed. 2) I. 302 Immediately below these three institutions stand the Ministries, ten in number.
1877 D. M. Wallace Russia (ed. 2) I. 305 The Governor..is the local representative of the Ministry of the Interior.
1915 Econ. Jrnl. 25 258 The establishment of a Ministry of Munitions.
1942 R.A.F. Jrnl. 18 Apr. 24 The Ministry of Food announces that the milk ration for children will be increased.
1949 ‘G. Orwell’ Nineteen Eighty-four 8 They were the homes of the four Ministries between which the entire apparatus of government was divided.
1968 Times 16 Dec. 7/1 An attempt at a Ministry takeover and a threat to a much valued independence.
1996 E. Lovelace Salt x. 80 Next morning Alford arrived under the samaan tree in front of the offices of the Ministry of Education.
d. man from the ministry n. [ < the name of a BBC Radio programme, The Men from the Ministry, first broadcast in 1962] a government official or bureaucrat, esp. of an officious kind.
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > rule or government > ruler or governor > a or the government > government minister > [noun]
minister1589
state secretary1660
man from the ministry1963
1963 Listener 21 Feb. 320/1 The image of bureaucracy, the man from the ministry, striped pants and gobbledygook.
1982 Guardian Weekly 4 Apr. 10 In the present climate, what manager would dare to do more than order a new supply of paper clips without first clearing it with..the man from the ministry?
2000 Observer (Nexis) 6 Aug. 24 Where half a century ago it might have been sufficient to reassure parents that the man from the Ministry knew best, they are now reluctant to accept that the lady from the social services..has the time or the resources to protect vulnerable children.
6. A religious house under the rule of a minister (minister n. 2a). Obsolete (historical in later use).
ΚΠ
1544 in Ayrshire Archaeol. & Nat. Hist. Soc. Coll. (1958) 4 106 The gift of the abbey and ministry of Failford.
1599 E. Topsell Times Lament. 21 Wee see many ministeries and parsonages defaced but none built.
c1626 H. Bisset Rolment Courtis (1922) II. 105 The numer of all the monasteries [etc.]..ministeries, preceptories, provinciall places [etc.].
1755 J. Spotiswood Acct. Relig. Houses Scotl. in R. Keith Large New Catal. Bishops Scotl. 243 Their [sc. the Red Friars'] Houses were named Hospitals or Ministries.
1889 W. Lockhart Church Scotl. in 13th Cent. 25 (note) Their [sc. the Red Friars'] houses were called hospitals or ministries.]
Compounds
General attributive.
ΚΠ
1649 Rowley Rec. 56 Provided that they make noe adission to the minestry Rate aboue 60 pounds.
1763 Boston Gaz. 10 Oct. 1/1 Building their half fence, between the said ministry land, and a lot of land given by our commoners to the poor.
1942 E. Waugh Put out More Flags iii. 219 A film was showing in the Ministry theatre: it dealt with otter-hunting.
1995 Ability Network Spring 41/3 An internal ministry memo..obtained by The Star.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2002; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.a1225