WordWeight : Weighing the Words

Pronunciation : Vic"ar
Part of Speech : n.
Etymology : [OE. vicar, viker, vicair, F. vicaire, fr. L. vicarius. See Vicarious.]
Definition : 1. One deputed or authorized to perform the functions of another; a substitute in office; a deputy. [R.]

2. (Eng. Eccl. Law)

Defn: The incumbent of an appropriated benefice.

Note: The distinction between a parson [or rector] and vicar is this: The parson has, for the most part, the whole right to the ecclesiastical dues in his parish; but a vicar has generally an appropriator over him, entitled to the best part of the profits, to whom he is in fact perpetual curate with a standing salary. Burrill. Apostolic vicar, or Vicar apostolic. (R. C. Ch.) (a) A bishop to whom the Roman pontiff delegates a portion of his jurisdiction. (b) Any ecclesiastic acting under a papal brief, commissioned to exercise episcopal authority. (c) A titular bishop in a country where there is no episcopal see, or where the succession has been interrupted. -- Vicar forane. Etym: [Cf. LL. foraneus situated outside of the episcopal city, rural. See Vicar, and Foreign.] (R. C. Ch.) A dignitary or parish priest appointed by a bishop to exercise a limited jurisdiction in a particular town or district of a diocese. Addis & Arnold. -- Vicar-general. (a) (Ch. of Eng.) The deputy of the Archbishop of Canterbury or York, in whose court the bishops of the province are confirmed. Encyc. Brit. (b) (R. C. Ch.) An assistant to a bishop in the discharge of his official functions. -- Vicar of Jesus Christ (R. C. Ch.), the pope as representing Christ on earth.
Source : Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913