A presbyteral council or council of priests is a group of priests chosen to assist the local ordinary in an advisory capacity in the governance of a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

diocese In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associ ...

. Canon 495 of the Code of Canon Law lays down that every diocese must have such a council. The council addresses matters concerning the pastoral welfare of the people of God in the local church. About half of the members of the council are freely elected by the priests. The others have membership either because of a position that they hold (''

ex officio An ''ex officio'' member is a member of a body (notably a board, committee, council) who is part of it by virtue of holding another office. The term '' ex officio'' is Latin, meaning literally 'from the office', and the sense intended is 'by right ...

'') or because nominated by the

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ...

. It is for the bishop to decide when to consult the council, to preside over the meeting and to determine the agenda, whether the items for inclusion are his own initiative or are proposed by some member of the council. In the case of a ''

sede vacante ''Sede vacante'' ( in Latin.) is a term for the state of a diocese while without a bishop. In the canon law of the Catholic Church, the term is used to refer to the vacancy of the bishop's or Pope's authority upon his death or resignation. Hi ...

'' the council ceases to exist and its functions are taken over by the

college of consultors A consultor is one who gives counsel, i.e., a counselor. In the Catholic Church, it is a specific title for various advisory positions: *in the Roman Curia, a consultor is a specially appointed expert who may be called upon for advice desired b ...

.Can. 501 §2

References

Catholic canonical structures {{RC-Canon-law-stub