Pastoral letter

Not to be confused with Pastoral epistles.

A pastoral letter, often simply called a pastoral, is an open letter addressed by a bishop to the clergy or laity of a diocese or to both, containing general admonition, instruction or consolation, or directions for behaviour in particular circumstances.[1] In most episcopal church bodies,[clarification needed] clerics are often required to read out pastoral letters of superior bishops to their congregations.[citation needed]

In the Catholic Church, such letters are also sent out regularly at particular ecclesiastical seasons, particularly at the beginning of fasts.[1]

In the non-episcopal Protestant churches a pastoral letter is any open letter addressed by a pastor to his congregation, more especially to one customarily issued at certain seasons, for example, by the moderator of a Presbyterian assembly or the chairman of a Congregational or Baptist union.[1]

The Armenian term for pastoral letter is kondak, also translated as encyclical, statement, or decree.[2][3][4][5]

  1. ^ a b c  One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Pastoral Letter". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 20 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 898.
  2. ^ Avakian, Anne M. (1994). Armenian Folklore Bibliography. University of California Press. p. 106. ISBN 0520097947. Retrieved 15 September 2021. Khrimian, M. 1907 "Kondak." [Pastoral Letter.]
  3. ^ Abraham of Crete | Historians of the Ottoman Empire, at uchicago.edu. Quote: "Kondak i veray T`ek`irdaghu" (Encyclical)...
  4. ^ Melkonyan, Christine. On the Preparations of the 50th Anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. September 2019. Quote: ...Catholicos Vazgen I issued a statement (kondak) on "the martyrdom of the Western Armenian people during World War I"... Accessed 2021-09-15
  5. ^ The Activities of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, http://www.genocide-museum.am. Quote: ...the Holy Etchmiadzin Fraternal Relief Committee was created by means of the Catholicos of All Armenians Gevorg V Surenyants' Kondak (Decree)...