Curate,

Curate, literally one who has the cure (Lat. cura, 'care') of souls, in which sense it is used in the Church of England Prayer-book, 'all bishops and curates;' as the cognate word curé is used in French to denote the incumbent of a parish. It is, however, generally used now to denote the unbene-ficed parochial clergy in the Church of England, more exactly styled 'assistant curates.' Formerly, such curates were usually the deputies of non-resident incumbents, but now they are mostly helpers of resident pastors. A curate, in this sense, is a minister employed by the incumbent of a church (rector or vicar), either as assistant to him in the same church, or else in a chapel of ease within the parish belonging to the mother-church. He must be licensed and admitted by the bishop of the diocese, or by an ordinary having episcopal jurisdiction, who also usually appoints his salary. Any curate that has no fixed estate in his curacy, not being instituted and inducted, is liable to removal on six months' notice from the incumbent, and to summary withdrawal of his license by the bishop. In the latter case, an appeal to the archbishop of the province is open. But there are perpetual curates as well as temporary, who are appointed where tithes are inappropriate and no vicarage was ever endowed: these are incumbents, and not removable, and the appropriators are obliged to maintain them. Their title in new district parishes has been changed to that of vicar.