acolyte:
(plural: ‘acolytes‘; pronunciation: the letter ‘c’ is said with a ‘k’ sound as in “king” — for the right pronunciation, please click here)
acolytes at a mass
(in religion) a person whose job is to help or assist a priest to perform religious ceremonies;
(in some Christian Churches) a person who wants to be a priest;
a disciple; a devotee;
a sincere follower or attendant; a helper; a fan; a supporter;
e.g.
An acolyte in a church does several duties such as lighting the candles, keeping or removing the pall, a cloth covering, and some other chores that a priest may need during the service.
Some political pundits felt that Tony Blair, the former prime minister of UK, was a devoted acolyte of George Bush, the former president of the USA.
For a news article that shows us how this word is used in non-religious sense, to refer to strong supporters to a politician, please click here.
