priestcraft
Clerical political scheming
Priestcraft is the use of religious authority for personal gain or political manipulation.
The term implies that clergy exploit their spiritual position through calculated self-interest rather than genuine faith: The reformers accused the bishops of priestcraft and corruption.
The word carries a Protestant flavor, historically aimed at Catholic hierarchy, but applies to any tradition where religious leaders are suspected of wielding influence for worldly ends.
Clergy appointment ceremony
- clergyOrdained religious officials collectively
- ministerReligious leader or serve
- pastorChristian congregation leader
- parsonProtestant parish minister
vicar · chaplain · rector · curate · preacher · bishop · ecclesiastical · parish
Faker claiming false expertise
- impostureDeception through false identity
- deceptionIntentional misleading of others
- fraudIntentional criminal trickery
- exploitationSelfish use of others
chicanery · duplicity · guile · subterfuge · scheming · trickery · connivance · artifice
Unchallengeable official beliefs
- catechismReligious teaching guide
- orthodoxyAdherence to accepted beliefs
- canonAccepted authoritative works
- creedStatement of belief
heresy · apostasy · sectarianism · exegesis · homiletics · proselytism · schism · scripture
Formal event marking occasions
- liturgyFormal worship structure
- ritesFormal ceremonial acts
- incantationSpoken magical formula
- chantingRhythmic repetitive vocalization
vestments · procession · sacrament · communion · mass · altar · sanctuary · tabernacle
Understood by few
- occultConcealed from view
- esotericAccessible to few
- mysteriesUnexplained phenomena or events
- crypticObscure in meaning
inscrutable · cabalistic · recondite · oracle · veiled · hidden · secret rites · initiation
ordination
Clergy appointment ceremony
- clergyOrdained religious officials collectively
- ministerReligious leader or serve
- pastorChristian congregation leader
parson · vicar · chaplain · rector · curate · preacher · bishop · ecclesiastical · parish · diocese
charlatan
Faker claiming false expertise
- impostureDeception through false identity
- deceptionIntentional misleading of others
- fraudIntentional criminal trickery
exploitation · chicanery · duplicity · guile · subterfuge · scheming · trickery · connivance · artifice · swindle
dogma
Unchallengeable official beliefs
- catechismReligious teaching guide
- orthodoxyAdherence to accepted beliefs
- canonAccepted authoritative works
creed · heresy · apostasy · sectarianism · exegesis · homiletics · proselytism · schism · scripture · theocracy
ceremony
Formal event marking occasions
- liturgyFormal worship structure
- ritesFormal ceremonial acts
- incantationSpoken magical formula
chanting · vestments · procession · sacrament · communion · mass · altar · sanctuary · tabernacle · baptism
arcane
Understood by few
cryptic · inscrutable · cabalistic · recondite · oracle · veiled · hidden · secret rites · initiation · gnosis
craft, priest, crafty, crafted, craftsman, priests, craftsmanship, handicraft, crafting