A middle judicatory is an administrative structure or organization found in

religious denomination A religious denomination is a subgroup within a religion that operates under a common name and tradition among other activities. The term refers to the various Christian denominations (for example, Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodox, Cat ...

s between the local

congregation A congregation is a large gathering of people, often for the purpose of worship. Congregation may also refer to: * Church (congregation), a Christian organization meeting in a particular place for worship *Congregation (Roman Curia), an administr ...

and the widest or highest national or international level. The term is meant to be neutral with regard to polity, though it derives from

Presbyterianism Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

where the local, regional and national bodies are themselves respectively higher

court A court is any person or institution, often as a government institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out the administration of justice in civil, criminal, and administrative matters in acco ...

s. Depending on the polity, the middle judicatory can have decisive authority over a local church, can offer standing for clergy members but little or no control over congregations, can offer counsel and services but no authority, or can serve as an informal vehicle for fellowship and communication.

Church of England

* Dioceses of the Church of England

Church of Scotland

* Synods and Presbyteries of the Church of Scotland

Episcopal Church in the United States of America

* Dioceses of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America * Provinces of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America

Evangelical Lutheran Church in America

* Regions and Synods of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America

Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod

Districts of the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod The Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod (LCMS) is organized into 35 districts, 33 of which are defined along geographic lines. Each district has a President (corporate title), president who oversees the congregations in his district, which are further ...

Presbyterian Church (USA)

* List of Presbyterian Church (USA) synods and presbyteries

Religious Society of Friends (Quakers)

Yearly Meetings Yearly Meeting is a term used by members of the Religious Society of Friends, or Quakers, to refer to an organization composed of constituent meetings or churches within a geographical area. The constituent meetings are called Monthly Meetings i ...

United Church of Canada

* Conferences and Presbyteries of the United Church of Canada

United Church of Christ

* Associations of the United Church of Christ *

Conferences of the United Church of Christ There are 36 Conferences in the United Church of Christ. Most of these consist of associations and all consist of congregations, formally known as "Local Churches." Puerto Rico was the 39th conference; prior to its affiliation with the Congregatio ...

United Methodist Church

Conferences of the United Methodist Church The following is a list of the conferences in many Methodist Churches, such as The United Methodist Church and Evangelical Wesleyan Church. Conferences There are several kinds of conferences in Methodism: * General Conference is the highest delib ...

Unitarian Universalist Association

Districts of the Unitarian Universalist Association The Unitarian Universalist Association, an association of Unitarian Universalist Congregations in the United States of America, is composed of 19 Districts. Structure Each District has its own District-level organization, complete with govern ...

References

{{reflist * Lummis, Adair T. ''The Middle Judicatory as a System of Congregations Connected to the Regional Office'' Hartford Institute for Religious Researc

Accessed 20 July 2006. Types of Christian organization