parish / rectory
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parish
A church administrative unit that includes a community of believers in a specific geographical area and is led by a priest or pastor. A synonym for parish or church community.
Unsere Pfarre organisiert jedes Jahr einen Wohltätigkeitsbasar.
Our parish organizes a charity bazaar every year.
rectory
The official building or residence of a priest or pastor; the parsonage or rectory. This meaning is mainly used in Austria and southern Germany.
Der neue Pfarrer ist gestern in die Pfarre eingezogen.
The new priest moved into the rectory yesterday.
'Die Pfarre' (the parish/rectory) is closely connected with 'der Pfarrer' (the priest/pastor). The Pfarre is the official or community district for which a Pfarrer is responsible.
Der neue Pfarrer wurde in seiner Pfarre herzlich willkommen geheißen.
The new priest was warmly welcomed in his parish.
The meaning 'Pfarrhaus' (rectory/parsonage, the priest's residence) is common mainly in Austria and southern Germany. In the rest of the German-speaking world, people usually say 'das Pfarrhaus' for this.
Die Pfarre muss dringend renoviert werden.
The rectory urgently needs to be renovated.
Whether the community (m01) or the building (m02) is meant can be recognized from the verb. Verbs like 'gehören zu' (to belong to) or 'organisieren' (to organize) point to the community, while verbs like 'einziehen' (to move in) or 'renovieren' (to renovate) refer to the building.
Viele Freiwillige engagieren sich in unserer Pfarre.
Many volunteers are active in our parish.
When the church community is meant, 'Pfarre' (parish) is often used with prepositions such as 'in der Pfarre' (in the parish) or 'zur Pfarre' (to the parish). Typical verbs are 'leiten' (to lead), 'angehören' (to belong to), or 'aktiv sein' (to be active).
Er gehört seit seiner Kindheit zur Pfarre St. Michael.
He has belonged to the parish of St. Michael since childhood.
parish
Pfarrei and Pfarre can both refer to the local church community and its area. Pfarrei is the more general standard-language form, while Pfarre is used mainly regionally. Outside those regions, Pfarrei is usually the more appropriate choice.
In Österreich organisiert die Pfarre am Sonntag ein Fest für die Gemeinde.
In Austria, the parish is organizing a celebration for the community on Sunday.
Die Pfarrei organisiert am Sonntag ein Fest für die Gemeinde.
The parish is organizing a celebration for the community on Sunday.
