Assistant or Associate

I got my personalized business cards from The Church today. My title is listed as "Assistant Pastor."

Ummm, that's not right. My title is "Associate Pastor."

I don't mean to be picky about it, but there's a big difference. Consider (from Wiktionary):

associate (plural associates)

1. A person united with another or others in an act, enterprise, or business; a partner or colleague.
2. A companion; a comrade.

assistant (plural assistants)

1. A person who assists or helps someone else.

The move from "associate" to "assistant" is a move away from partnership and companionship and a move towards paid help.

I felt bad and apologized when I showed the Office Manager the error. But not that bad, and not for very long.