priesthood

priesthood
    n 1: the body of ordained religious practitioners
    

Priesthood \Priest"hood\, n.
   1. The office or character of a priest; the priestly
      function. --Bk. of Com. Prayer.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. Priests, taken collectively; the order of men set apart
      for sacred offices; the order of priests.
      [1913 Webster]
    

priesthood
 n.

   [TMRC; obs.] The select group of system managers responsible for the
   operation and maintenance of a batch computer system. On these
   computers, a user never had direct access to a computer, but had to
   submit his/her data and programs to a priest for execution. Results
   were returned days or even weeks later.
    

29 Moby Thesaurus words for "priesthood":
      Sacred College, apostleship, call, care of souls, clergy,
      clerical order, clericalism, clericals, episcopalianism,
      holy orders, ministry, pastorage, pastoral care, pastorate,
      prelacy, presbytery, priestery, priestism, priestship, rabbinate,
      sacerdotalism, sacred calling, the church, the cloth, the desk,
      the ministry, the pulpit, ultramontanism, vocation