BENEFICE, Beneficium, is used for a fee, which is sometimes denominated more peculiarly beneficium militare. In this sense benefice was an estate in land, at first granted for life only, and so called because it was held ex mero beneficio of the donor; and the tenants were bound to swear fealty to the lord, and to serve him in the wars. In aftertimes, as these tenures became perpetual and hereditary, they transferred their name of beneficia to the livings of the clergy, and retained that of feus. Benefice, in an ecclesiastical sense, a church endowed with a revenue for the performance of divine service; or the revenue itself assigned to an ecclesiastical person, by way of stipend, for the service he is to do that church.

All church-preferments, except bishoprics, are called benefices, and all benefices are, by the canonists, sometimes styled dignities; but we now ordinarily distinguish between benefice and dignity, applying dignity to bishoprics, deaneries, archdeaconries, and prebendaries, and benefice to parsonages, vicarages, and donatives.

Benefices are divided by the canonists into simple and sacerdotal. In the first there is no obligation but to read prayers, sing, or chant, such as canonries, chaplainships, chantries, and the like; the second are charged with the cure of souls, or the direction and guidance of consciences, such as vicarages, rectories, and the like.

The Romanists again distinguish benefices into regular and secular. Beyular or titular benefices are those held by a religionist or a regular who has made profession of some religious order, such as abbeys, priories, conventuals, &c.; or rather, a regular benefice is that which cannot be conferred on any but a religionist, either by its foundation, by the institution of some superior, or by prescription; and forty years possession by a religionist makes the benefice regular by prescription. Secular benefices are those which are conferred on secular priests, that is, on such as live in the world, and are not engaged in any monastic order. All benefices are reputed secular till the contrary is made to appear; and they arc called secular benefices from being held by seculars; of which kind are almost all cures.

The canonists distinguish three modes of vacating a benefice, 1. De jure, when the person enjoying it is guilty of certain crimes expressed in those laws, as heresy, simony, and the like: 2. De facto as well as de jure, by the natural death or the resignation of the incumbent; which resignation may be either express or tacit, as when he engages in a state inconsistent with it, as, among the Romanists, by marrying, entering into a religious order, or the like: 3. By the sentence of a judge, by way of punishment for certain crimes, as concubinage, perjury, and the like.

Benefices began about a. d. 500. Of those in England, according to Dr Burn, there are 1071 livings not exceeding L.10 per annum; 1467 livings above L.10 and not exceeding L.20 per annum; 1126 livings above L.20 and not exceeding L.30 per annum; 1049 livings above L.30 and not exceeding L.40 per annum; 884 livings above L.40 and not exceeding L.50 per annum: in all 5597 livings under L.50 per annum. And on the whole, there are above 11,000 church preferments in England; exclusive of bishoprics, deaneries, canonries, prebendaries, priest-vicars, lay-vicars, secondaries, &c. belonging to cathedrals, or choristers, or even curates to well-beneficed clergymen.

Benefice in commendam is that, the direction and management of which, upon a vacancy, is given or commended to an ecclesiastic, for a certain time, until he can be conveniently provided for.