Dear Gregorius and Agrippa,
I think you are both correct concerning the first "P" not referring to "parochus" (priest) but instead referring to "pastor," meaning apparently that the "P P Ref." in the parish record stands for "pastor parochiæ reformatæ" (pastor of the reformed parish).
I introduced the thought that the initial "P" stood for "parochus" but feel I now stand corrected. I introduced that thought in my original post based on common parish register use of the word "parochus" to refer to a Roman Catholic priest. (See, e.g.,
https://bit.ly/3cu3owN -- such as on page 293, for example, and elsewhere in the text, where the word "parochus" is referred to on at least 23 pages). Even in light of that source, however, your suggested alternative, "pastor," seems just as likely a meaning for the first "P" in the "P P Ref." under consideration, especially in light of what both of you have said concerning "Ref." Venn diagram: a "parochus" is a "pastor" but not all "pastori" are "parochi"; some pastors are not Roman Catholic.
The history underlying your two responses seems of course very well suited to support your responses. The impact of the Protestant Reformation was widespread and extended to Poland early. See:
.
en.wikipedia.org
http://www.ceceurope.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/CEC-Member-Churches-WEB.pdf (see pp. 161-1162)
Indeed, concerning the very parish register referred to in my original post (from Gorlice, Poland, far in the south of the country), the general geographical area and the general time frame may well have accommodated the presence then and there of a "
pastor parochiæ reformatæ." Although not well supported, it is stated that "[d]uring the 19th century the number of Polish Reformed parishes shrank from 4 to just one in Kraków. There the Reformed shared the parish with Lutherans, and these became so dominant that from 1828 only Lutheran pastors were called to the pulpit, though a handful of Reformed survived." (See
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polish_Reformed_Church.) Perhaps one such reformed pastor (maybe the pastor mentioned in the image from the parish register accompanying my initial post) served in or near Gorlice and perhaps may have been among the "handful of Reformed" that "survived." (See
https://goo.gl/maps/cp8Upsu9N7Ww5j2KA -- the distance from Gorlice to Kraków suggests this scenario may be possible.)
There seems to be early evidence of the presence of the Reformed Church in Gorlice itself (see
https://bit.ly/34KurkM) and the Reformed Church is present in Poland today (see
http://www.reformowani.pl/index.php/welcome; see also
http://www.reformowani.pl/index.php/the-history).
While there are modern efforts of some religious communities to recognize the baptisms of other religious communities (see, e.g.,
https://bit.ly/2VJMrI6), it appears perhaps that the parish register there is not evidence of any cross-faith recognition of the rite of baptism but instead the Gorlice parish church register attached to my original post actually may well have been a civil register that the Roman Catholic priest may have been required by law to use to record a baptism performed by a reformed pastor. Note on this account the following:
"Austria took possession of the southern part of Poland in 1772. Austria introduced laws in 1782 establishing Catholic priests as civil registrars. Then, in 1784, an edict by the emperor Joseph II required the Catholic clergy to make civil transcripts of church records. Catholic parish registers were designated as state records and a standardized Latin columnar form was issued. The parish register thus became the official register of births, marriages, and deaths. A transcript (duplicate) was made for state purposes. Separate registers were required for each village in the parish. Greek-Catholic and Roman-Catholic clergy were responsible for the registration of all vital records for all religions; Protestants were permitted to keep their own registers under the direction of the Catholic priest. Jews were allowed the same privilege in 1789. In the mid 1800s non-Catholics, including Jews and Protestants, were made responsible for their own vital records transcripts."
(See
https://bit.ly/3ajQ1xu.)
I believe the contributions by both of you may well be leading us to a reasonable understanding of the reference to "P P Ref." and if you have further thoughts they indeed are welcome.
Thank you.
