An episcopal polity is a hierarchical form of church governance in which the chief local authorities are called bishops. The word "bishop" here is derived via the British Latin and Vulgar Latin term *ebiscopus/*biscopus, from the Ancient Greek ἐπίσκοπος epískopos meaning "overseer". It is the structure used by many of the major Christian Churches and denominations, such as the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Church of the East, Anabaptist, Lutheran, and Anglican churches or denominations, and other churches founded independently from these lineages. Many Methodist denominations have a form of episcopal polity known as connexionalism.
The World Alliance of Reformed Churches (WARC) was a fellowship of more than 200 churches with roots in the 16th century Reformation, and particularly in the theology of John Calvin. Its headquarters was in Geneva, Switzerland. They merged with the Reformed Ecumenical Council in 2010 to form the World Communion of Reformed Churches.
The Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) was inaugurated in May 1974 at its First General Assembly in Nicosia, Cyprus, and now has its headquarters in Beirut, Lebanon. Initially it consisted of three "families" of Christian Churches in the Middle East, the Eastern Orthodox Churches, the Oriental Orthodox Churches and the Evangelical Churches, which were joined in 1990 by the Catholic Churches of the region. It is a regional council affiliated with the mainstream ecumenical movement which also gave birth to the World Council of Churches, of which the MECC is also a member.
The Union of the Armenian Evangelical Churches in the Near East, abbreviated as UAECNE, is an autonomous body of Armenian Evangelical churches comprising 25 congregations throughout Lebanon, Syria, Turkey, Greece, Egypt, Iran, Iraq and Australia.
The Near East School of Theology (NEST), located in Beirut, Lebanon, is an interdenominational Reformed Protestant theological seminary serving Christian churches of the Middle East and North Africa, and also educates international students who have a special interest in Biblical and Islamic studies in a Middle Eastern context or those especially interested in the Ancient churches.
The Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus is a Lutheran denomination in Ethiopia. It is the largest member church of the Lutheran World Federation. It is a Lutheran denomination with some Pentecostal influence and one Presbyterian-leaning synod, with a large Pietistic following.
The Evangelical Church of Egypt (Synod of the Nile) (also called the Evangelical Presbyterian Church in Egypt, Egyptian: الكنيسة الإنجيلية المشيخية El-Kenisa El-Engileyya El-Mashyykhia) is a Protestant church that started as a mission of the United Presbyterian Church of North America among Coptic Egyptians in the late nineteenth century. The Evangelical Church of Egypt became autonomous in 1957 and officially independent in 1958. It has eight presbyteries, 314 congregations, and about 250,000 members.
The World Communion of Reformed Churches (WCRC) is the largest association of Reformed (Calvinist) churches in the world. It has 230 member denominations in 108 countries, together claiming an estimated 80 million people, thus being the fourth-largest Christian communion in the world after the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox Church, and the Anglican Communion. This ecumenical Christian body was formed in June 2010 by the union of the World Alliance of Reformed Churches (WARC) and the Reformed Ecumenical Council (REC).
The National Evangelical Church of Beirut (NEC) is a reformed church in Beirut, member of the National Evangelical Church Union of Lebanon.
According to the 2005 census, Christians accounted for 9 percent of the total population of the United Arab Emirates; estimates in 2010 suggested a figure of 12.6%.
Riad Jarjour is a Syrian Christian clergyman who served as General Secretary of the Middle East Council of Churches between 1994 and 2003. He was born in Aleppo and grew up in the city of Homs.
The National Evangelical Presbyterian Church of Latakia is a church in Latakia, Syria. It is a member of the Synod of Syria and Lebanon. With a capacity of around 400, it is one of the biggest churches in Latakia, having approximately 1000 members. Weekly activities in the church include the main Sunday service and Sunday school on Fridays, in addition to Bible study and conferences. The church has many teams for Christian songs, theater, and football games.
The Reformed Presbyterian Church of Equatorial Guinea is a minority church in Equatorial Guinea. It is reformed by its theology and presbyterian by its form of government, as stated in its constitution. The principal religion in Equatorial Guinea is Christianity, with approximately 85-93% of the population as followers. Most Christians belong to the Roman Catholic Church (80-87%) while a minority are Protestants (5-7%). Another 5% of the population follow indigenous beliefs, 2% are Muslims, followers of Baha'i and other beliefs.
The Fellowship of Middle East Evangelical Churches (FMEEC) is an ecumenical organisation comprising Protestant churches in the Middle East with representatives from Sudan to Iran. Established in 1974, the current president of the FMEEC is the Rev Dr Andrea Zaki.
Evangelical Church has a history in Iraq that goes back to 1850. This church focus on education and established several schools in main cities in Iraq including Baghdad, Mosul, Basra and Kirkuk. After 2003, this church established more presence in Iraqi Kurdistan. The presence and influence of these churches and schools varies depending on the political system in Iraq. Members of this church comes from Iraqi Presbyterian church and the historic Iraqi Syrian Catholic denomination.
The National Evangelical Church Union of Lebanon was founded by Presbyterian and Congregational missionaries from the United States. It is a member of the World Communion of Reformed Churches.
Lebanese Protestant Christians refers to Lebanese people who are adherents of Protestantism in Lebanon.
Najla Abou Sawan Kassab is an ordained minister in the National Evangelical Synod of Syria and Lebanon (NESSL). She was elected president of the World Communion of Reformed Churches (WCRC) at its 2017 General Council in Leipzig, Germany.
