Noun
Government of the church by bishops; church government by three distinct orders of ministers -- bishops, priests, and deacons -- of whom the bishops have an authority superior and of a different kind.
Source: Webster's dictionaryControl by the bishop of Winchester was ineffectual as the islands had turned overwhelmingly Calvinist and the episcopacy was not restored until 1620 in Jersey and 1663 in Guernsey. Source: Internet
Puritan-inspired petitions for the removal of the prayer book and episcopacy " root and branch " resulted in local disquiet in many places and, eventually, the production of locally organized counter petitions. Source: Internet
The developing churches eventually intended "graduating" to regular diocesan status with a local episcopacy appointed, especially after decolonization, as the church structures often reflect the political-administrative actuality. Source: Internet
Cyril spent a good part of his episcopacy in intermittent exile from Jerusalem. Source: Internet
Martin Luther The Bondage of the Will (1525) They both said that the episcopacy was inadequate to address corruption, doctrinal or otherwise, and that this inadequacy justified the intervention of the church of common people. Source: Internet
Nevertheless, the powers of the Methodist episcopacy can be relatively strong and wide-reaching compared to traditional conceptions of episcopal polity. Source: Internet