Archpriest

An archpriest is a non-monastic priest elevated with an honorific rank, equivalent to the monastic archimandrite, though ranking one position lower. Archpriests are styled Very Reverend.

The honor is usually given as a recoginition of exemplary service or faithfulness to one's duties while in their current office.

The term protopresbyter (or protopriest) is equivalent to archpriest in Greek practice, while in Slavic usage, a protopresbyter is a rank separate from and higher than archpriest. Sometimes the protopresbyter is styled as Right Reverend. Also, there are usually only a handful of protopresbyters in a given Slavic national church at any one time.

In Greek practice, archpriests wear a pectoral cross to designate their rank, while in Slavic practice, all priests wear pectoral crosses regardless of rank. Although in Slavic practice, the different ranks of priests are distinguished by different types of crosses, and the archpriest usually claims a gold cross.