in England, are an order of preachers in parish churches, distinct from the rector, vicar, and curate. They are chosen by the vestry, or chief inhabitants of the parish, supported by voluntary subscriptions and legacies, and are usually the afternoon preachers in the Sunday service. The term is also more generally applied to those who preach on Sunday, or on any stated day of the week, in churches, or other places of public worship. By 13 & 14 Car. II. cap. 4. lecturers in churches, unlicensed, and not conforming to the liturgy, shall be disabled, and shall also suffer three months imprisonment in the common gaol; and two justices, or the mayor in a town corporate, shall, upon certificate from the ordinary, commit them accordingly. Where there are lectures founded by the donations of pious persons, the lecturers are appointed by the founders without any interposition or consent of rectors of churches, &c. though with the leave and approbation of the bishop; such as that of Lady Moyer's at St Paul's. But the lecturer is not entitled to the pulpit, without the consent of the rector or vicar, who is possessed of the freehold of the church.