Preacher

==History==
Preachers are common throughout most cultures. They can take the form of a [[Christianity|Christian]] [[Minister (Christianity)|minister]] on a Sunday morning, or an Islamic [[imam]]. A Muslim preacher in general is referred to as a ''[[dawah|dā‘ī]]'', while one giving sermons on a Friday afternoon is called a ''[[khatib]]''.

The sermon or homily has been an important part of Christian services since Early Christianity, and remains prominent in both [[Catholic Church|Roman Catholicism]] and [[Protestantism]]. [[Lay preacher]]s sometimes figure in these traditions of worship, for example the [[Methodist local preacher]]s, but in general preaching has usually been a function of the [[clergy]]. The [[Dominican Order]] is officially known as the ''Order of Preachers'' ({{Lang|la|Ordo Praedicatorum}} in [[Latin language|Latin]]); [[friar]]s of this order were trained to publicly preach in [[vernacular]] languages, and the order was created by [[Saint Dominic]] to preach to the [[Cathar]]s of southern France in the early thirteenth century. The [[Franciscans]] are another important preaching order; Travelling preachers, usually friars, were an important feature of late medieval Catholicism.

In most denominations, modern preaching is kept below about 40 minutes, but historic preachers of all denominations could at times speak for well over an hour, sometimes for two or three hours,{{cn|date=April 2022}} and use techniques of [[rhetoric]] and theatre that are today somewhat out of fashion in mainline churches.

In many churches in the United States, the title ''preacher'' is synonymous with [[pastor|''pastor'']] or [[Minister (Christianity)|''minister'']], and the church's minister is often referred to simply as "our/the preacher" or by name such as "Preacher Smith". However, among some Chinese churches, 'preacher' ({{Lang-zh|c=傳道|links=no}}) is different from 'pastor' ({{Lang-zh|c=牧師|links=no}}). A preacher in the Protestant church is one of the younger clergy, but they are not officially recognised as pastors until they can prove their capability of leading the church.