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Bishopric
The bishopric is, in the Catholic tradition, the smallest community which can be called “a Church”. Other terms have a close to the notion, signification without being wholly synonyms: the Episcopal See, the local Church. Lutheran churches of France refer to “ecclesiastical inspection”.

Definitions
The bishopric includes: the relics of the holy founders An archbishopric includes a supremacy on a set of other bishopric
 * The episcopal see of a Bishop (episcopalis sedes): a Cathedral (that is to say, the place for the cathedra, or the place of the seat) with a baptistery.
 * A bishop, successor to the apostles who dispenses sacraments in the name of Trinity.
 * A liturgical traditional
 * A people of faith
 * A canonical territory, or diocese

Derived meanings
The meaning of the word bishopric may, however be extended to:
 * 1) The Episcopal city or town where a bishop lives, and where the cathedral is located; that is to say, the Church where he sits: for instance, in France, the instance, the nine dioceses of Brittany.
 * 2) The usual residency of a bishop, which means the building where he lives in that same city: for instance, the Roman bishopric of Angers. That residence may also be called “the bishop’s palace”.
 * 3) The country is defined by the geographical space and a human of the bishopric: for example, the three bishoprics of Lorraine formed a province in France in the 16th and the 17th centuries.

Current use in some Churches
The word bishopric and diocese are not synonyms. Yet, in some Anglo-Saxon or Latin communities, the word diocese tends to replace the word bishopric and take on the meaning of the local Church.

The Protestant tradition
Protestant theology does not have priests in the catholic sense. In fact, Luther was committed to principle of universal priesthood, according to which every person who has been baptized is “a Prophet, a Priest, and a King” under the lordship of Christ. This concept wipes out all principles of hierarchy within the Church. All baptized persons are on a same plane, including the ministers (which includes the Pastors). These ministers have studied theology and are acknowledged by the Church; they serve the community by proclaiming the Word of God (preaching and sacraments) and the particular/ specific missions that comes with it. The Protestant Churches know two situations:
 * Episcopal ministry Department acknowledging/ implying the existence of a “bishopric”
 * Among Anglicans, every “province” (in fact, every independent Church) is organized in bishoprics, in which the authorities are assigned to a synod involving the participation of clerks and elected laypersons. Anglicans claim an uninterrupted Apostolic succession: during the Reformation, the Roman Catholic Church of England became Anglican without any bishop being replaced. The administration of the “province” is taken on by a general synod.
 * Among some Lutheran Churches, Methodists and some reformed Churches, there is also a Department of Episcopal ministry, which is a function of the Church and not a sacramental order. The bishops are elected by synods. In the Lutheran Churches of France, it is the superintendent, who is a member of the pastoral staff, who operates a ministry of an Episcopal type within a constituency called “inspection”.
 * Episcopal ministry entrusted to pastors: in other Protestant Churches, at the local Church level, the Episcopal ministry is that of the pastors (traditionally, they are elected); collectively, they are elders. The consistory, or Presbyterian Council, is elected by the general assembly, which is also elected, in the Presbyterian polity, a certain number of delegates in the synod. At a national level, the unity of the ministry is ensured by the synods and by the Council they have elected. There are no bishoprics, but regions. There is a regional synod and a national synod.