These are not my words,this is another persons thread and he allowed me to post it.
The WBTS seems to do everything it can to make it's organization appear so different from other "Christian" organizations. One of the ways they do this is by neutralizing congregational and organizational titles in its hierarchy. A close look reveals that the organizational structure and titles used by the WBTS mirror the structure and titles in the Catholic and Orthodox churches. Everything is a mere euphemism.
A publisher is a "layperson". The word "laity" is from the Greek "laos", meaning crowd of people, an refers to ordinary individuals. Why the WBTS uses the word publisher is odd, although it refers to a function more than anything (.e., people making the good news "public", or publicising the gospel). Interestingly, the WBTS likes to say that when a person is baptized a JW, they are "ordained". That isn't accurate, since ordained means "appointed". Form the earliest times, every Christian who was ever baptized was expected to be a proclaimer of Jesus' message, both in word and in deed. To crown a newly-baptized person with the term "ordained" is silly because since the earliest times "ordination" was reserved for the organizational and administrative "offices" of a congregation.
Elders, Overseers and Ministeral Servants are appointed non-laypeople. Another word for appointed is "ordained". Look it up in your dictionaries.
Ministerial Servant = Deacon
Where they get "ministerial servant" is beyond me, but okay. The word in Greek is "diakonos" which is the root word for "deacon"
Elder = Priest
The Greek word for elder is "presvyteros" (presbyter), which is the root word for "priest"
Overseer = Bishop
No big surprise here. Overseer in Greek is "episcopos", which is the root word for "bishop"
Pres. Overseer/Circ. Overseer = Archbishop
"Arch" is a prefix from the Greek meaning "chief" or "principle". The term applies more appropriately to the individual in charge of several congregations, such as the Circuit Overseer. A more accurate term for a congregational setting would be a Presiding Elder, in which case the word in Greek would be "protopresvyteros", or "protopresbyter", the presiding priest of an Orthodox congregation (there is often more than one).
District or Zone Overseer = Cardinal or Metropolitan
A bishop who oversees several dioceses is ordinarily a Cardinal, in the RCC (Roman Catholic Church), or a Metropolitan in the GOC (Greek Orthodox Church), although in the Orthodox Church they can also be called Archbishops or even Katholikos (such as in the Armenian Church).
Governing Body = Curia or Ecumenical Synod
The authority for doctrine and theology in the RCC is the Curia, answerable to the Pope. In the GOC it is the Ecumenical Synod, presided over by the head of the Orthodox Church called the Ecumenical Patriarch (patriarch and pope mean essentially the same thing). Each institution governs the spiritual, theological and doctrinal affairs of their respective churches. In the WBTS it is called the Governing Body.
Compare . . .
CATHOLIC AND ORTHODOX HIERARCHY
NOTE: RC=Roman Cathoic, GO=Greek Orthodox
1. Layperson
2. Deacon
3. Priest/Presbyter
4. (Protopresbyter - GO)
5. Bishop
6. Archbishop
7. Cardinal (RC)/Metropolitan (GO)
8. Curia (RC)/Ecumenical Synod (GO)
9. Pope (RC)/Patriarch (GO)
JW HIERARCHY
1. Publisher
2. Ministereal Servant
3. Elder
4. (Presiding Overseer)
5. Overseer
6. Circuit Overseer
7. District Overseer/Zone Overseer
8. Governing Body
9. President of Governing Body
Both in structure and in function the WBTS, and RCC and GOC are identical. Doctrinal differences obviously exist, however all three protect and guard their doctrines with equal fervor.