In Christian churches, a minister is someone who is authorized by a church or religious organization to perform functions such as teaching of beliefs; leading services such as weddings, baptisms or funerals; or otherwise providing spiritual guidance to the community. The term is taken from Latin minister "servant, attendant", which itself was derived from minus "less".

A Ministry of Religious Affairs (sometimes with a similar name) is a government department responsible for religious matters, including:

• Ministry of Religious Affairs (Algeria)
• Minister for Ecclesiastical Affairs of Denmark
• Ministry of Awqaf (Egypt)
• Minister of Worship (France)
• Ministers of Religious Affairs ("Kultus", in its literal meaning) of the German states. Most well known for their administration of (previously Church-run) schools (and hence usually translated as ministers of education), yet remain competent for the relationships with the Churches. See Kultusministerkonferenz
• Ministry of Education and Religious Affairs (Greece)
• Ministry of Minority Affairs of India (also responsible for linguistic minorities)
• Ministry of Religious Affairs (Indonesia)
• Ministry of Religious Services of Israel
• Ministry of Religious Affairs (Myanmar)
• Ministry of Religious Affairs (Pakistan)
• Minister of Religion (Serbia)
• Ministry of Gender, Social Welfare and Religious Affairs (South Sudan)
• Ministry of Religious Affairs (Tunisia)