View source for Ecclesiastical polity

'''Ecclesiastical polity''' is the government of a church.

There are local (congregational) forms of organization as well as denominational. A church's polity may describe its ministerial offices or an authority structure between churches. Polity relates closely to ecclesiology, the theological study of the church.

There are four general types of polity: [[Episcopal polity|episcopal]], [[Connexionalism|connexional]], [[Presbyterian polity|presbyterian]], and [[Congregationalist polity|congregational]].