General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland
Last updated Stamp of the General Assembly with the words "Ardens Sed Virenes" ("Burning but flourishing")
The General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland is the sovereign and highest court of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland, and is thus the Church's governing body. The General Assembly normally meets annually, during the first full week in June.
In common with other presbyterian churches, the Presbyterian Church in Ireland is governed by courts of elders. That is to say, it is governed by presbyterian polity. At the bottom of the hierarchy of courts is the Kirk Session, the court of the individual local churches; representatives of several Kirk Sessions form the Presbytery, the local area court. As in many other presbyterian churches the Synod, or regional level, is now left out. A Synod had authority over a group of presbyteries. At the level of the island of Ireland, the General Assembly stands at the top of this structure.
Every minister is a member, and every congregation sends one lay elder. Women's and youth organisations, deaconesses and sister churches are also entitled to send delegates, giving a total membership of around 1,300.
The sitting Assembly first installs a new Moderator of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland, who acts as a presiding officer for the rest of the session. After the Assembly rises at the end of the week, the Moderator spends much of the rest of the year as its ambassador.
The General Synod is the title of the governing body of some church organizations.
The Presbyterian Church (USA), abbreviated PC(USA), is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination in the United States. A part of the Reformed tradition, it is the largest Presbyterian denomination in the US, and known for its relatively progressive stance on doctrine. The PC(USA) was established by the 1983 merger of the Presbyterian Church in the United States, whose churches were located in the Southern and border states, with the United Presbyterian Church in the United States of America, whose congregations could be found in every state. The similarly named Presbyterian Church in America is a separate denomination whose congregations can also trace their history to the various schisms and mergers of Presbyterian churches in the United States.
Presbyterianpolity is a method of church governance typified by the rule of assemblies of presbyters, or elders. Each local church is governed by a body of elected elders usually called the session or consistory, though other terms, such as church board, may apply. Groups of local churches are governed by a higher assembly of elders known as the presbytery or classis; presbyteries can be grouped into a synod, and presbyteries and synods nationwide often join together in a general assembly. Responsibility for conduct of church services is reserved to an ordained minister or pastor known as a teaching elder, or a minister of the word and sacrament.
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The Presbyterian Church in the United States of America (PCUSA) was the first national Presbyterian denomination in the United States, existing from 1789 to 1958. In that year, the PCUSA merged with the United Presbyterian Church of North America, a denomination with roots in the Seceder and Covenanter traditions of Presbyterianism. The new church was named the United Presbyterian Church in the United States of America. It was a predecessor to the contemporary Presbyterian Church (USA).
The Free Presbyterian Church of Ulster is a Christian denomination founded by Ian Paisley in 1951. Doctrinally, the church describes itself as fundamentalist, evangelical, and separatist. Most of its members live in Northern Ireland, where the church is headquartered. The church has additional congregations in the Republic of Ireland, Great Britain and Australia, and a sister denomination in North America that has congregations in Canada and the United States. It also has a sister denomination in Nepal which was formed from the Nepal mission to the Unreached in November 2013.
The moderator of the General Assembly is the chairperson of a General Assembly, the highest court of a presbyterian or reformed church. Kirk sessions and presbyteries may also style the chairperson as moderator.
The General Assembly of the Church of Scotland is the sovereign and highest court of the Church of Scotland, and is thus the Church's governing body. It generally meets each year and is chaired by a Moderator elected at the start of the Assembly.
The Church of Scotland maintains a presbyterian polity and is thus governed by a hierarchy of bodies known as church courts. Each of these courts has a moderator and a clerk.
A Church of Scotland congregation is led by its minister and elders. Both of these terms are also used in other Christian denominations: see Minister (Christianity) and Elder (Christianity). This article discusses the specific understanding of their roles and functions in the Scottish Church.
Ecclesiastical polity is the operational and governance structure of a church or of a Christian denomination. It also denotes the ministerial structure of a church and the authority relationships between churches. Polity relates closely to ecclesiology, the study of doctrine and theology relating to church organization.
Presbyterian Church of East Africa (PCEA) is a Presbyterian denomination headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya. In Kenya, 10% of the population is Presbyterian. It was started by missionaries from Scotland, most notable of whom was Dr John Arthur. It has its headquarters in Nairobi South C.
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The Presbyterian Church of Nigeria is a Presbyterian church in the Federal Republic of Nigeria and subscribes to the Westminster Confession of Faith.
A session is a body of elected elders governing each local church within presbyterian polity.
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The Reformed Presbyterian churches are a communion of Presbyterians originating in Scotland in 1690 when its members declined to be part of the establishment of the Church of Scotland. The Reformed Presbyterian churches collectively have a little over 9,538 members worldwide in Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, Scotland, France, the United States of America, Canada, Japan, South Sudan and Australia.
The Presbyterian Church of the Philippines (PCP), officially The General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church of the Philippines, is a growing evangelical, Bible-based Reformed church in the Philippines. It was officially founded in 1987 and the General Assembly was organized in September 1996.
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