Religion When a
diocesan bishop or
auxiliary bishop retires, the word
emeritus is added to their former title, i.e., "Archbishop Emeritus of ...". The term "
Bishop Emeritus" of a particular see can apply to several people, if the first lives long enough. The title was applied to the Bishop of Rome,
Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, on his retirement. In
Community of Christ, the status of emeritus is occasionally granted to senior officials upon retirement. In
Judaism,
emeritus is often a title granted to long-serving
rabbis of
synagogues or other Jewish institutions. In some cases, the title is also granted to
chazzans or cantors.
Business It is also used in business and nonprofit organizations to denote perpetual status of the founder of an organization or individuals who made significant contributions to the institution.
Phil Knight, for example, is the co-founder of
Nike, and after decades of being the
CEO, he is now the chairman emeritus of the company.
Government Since 2001, the honorary title of president pro tempore emeritus has been given to a senator of the minority party who has previously served as
president pro tempore of the United States Senate. Following her decision to retire from Democratic leadership, the
House Steering and Policy Committee voted to grant
Nancy Pelosi the title of
Speaker Emerita in recognition of her service as
Speaker of the House, while newly elected Speaker
Mike Johnson referred to his ousted predecessor
Kevin McCarthy as
Speaker Emeritus.
Cabinet of Singapore also adopted the use of emeritus and so far it has been conferred to
Senior Minister of Singapore Goh Chok Tong in 2011, when he and then-
Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew both stepped down from the upcoming cabinet as part of the party's renewal process. Goh retired from politics in
2020, though his title as an emeritus was kept intact. ==See also==