Depunere

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Depunerea este scoaterea unui cleric din slujire și treapă clericală, și reducerea stării lui la cea de laic obișnuit. Când un cleric este depus, el nu mai face parte din cler și nu mai poate îndeplini nicio funcție sau slujire clericală. Doar episcopul poate depune un cleric. Depunerea este reglementată de dreptul canonic și de regulamentele fiecărei Biserici autocefale, fiind cel mai adesea consecința unor acte grave de imoralitate (afaceri materiale, desfrâu etc.) sau neascultare a unui cleric față de ierarhia lui bisericească (episcop, sinod).

Clerics may be deposed by means of a formal, canonical process via a spiritual court, but they may also be deposed by more "existential" means, e.g., by leaving the Church. In either case, any action on the part of the episcopacy is really just a recognition of the self-deposition that a man has taken upon himself by means of his actions.

Orthodox theology of ordination does not teach that an "indelible mark" is conferred as in Roman Catholicism. Rather, because the function of the clergy is only within the context of the Church community and as an extension of the authority of the bishop (or in the case of a bishop, of the whole episcopacy), when a cleric is deposed, he is really no longer a clergyman.

Deposition is distinct from laicization in that the latter is usually the result of a request by the cleric to be returned to the ranks of the laity. The terms are sometimes used interchangeably, however. In addition, defrocking is sometimes used to refer to deposition, but this is less correct, as it reflects the Roman Catholic "indelible mark" theology (and thus, since a man is always a clergyman, he may only be "defrocked," i.e., no longer permitted to serve as a priest).

Being deposed is also distinct from suspension in that it is a permanent revocation of the clerical office, while suspension means only that a cleric cannot serve for a temporary period.