The smallest unit of territory in the administrative network of traditional churches, wherein the pastoral and spiritual needs of its population may be served by a single priest or pastor and centered around a 'parish church.' The physical size of a parish was, ideally, such that a priest or pastor could walk (in days when there were yet no motorized vehicles) to its boundaries within an hour or two. The pace of development in the last half a century, especially in urban areas, have made the idea of the parish rather outdated.
Parochial is the adjective relating to the parish, though it is often used nowadays in a derogatory fashion to suggest "narrow-mindedness."
The original word seems to have been derived from the Greek para 'beside,' and oikos 'dwellings.'
©ALBERITH
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