A parson is a member of the clergy, typically a priest or presbyter, with pastoral responsibility for a parish. The term was formerly often used for some Anglican clergy and, more rarely, for ordained ministers in some other churches. In the pre-Reformation church, a parson was the priest of an independent parish church, that is, a church not under the control of a larger ecclesiastical or monastic organization. The term is similar to rector and is in contrast to a vicar, a cleric whose revenue is usually, at least partially, appropriated by a larger organization. Today, the term is normally used for some parish clergy of non-Roman Catholic churches, particularly in the Anglican tradition, in which a parson is the incumbent of a parochial benefice: a parish priest or a rector. In this sense, a parson can be compared with a vicar. The title parson can be applied to clergy from certain other denominations. A parson is often housed in a church-owned home known as a parsonage.