The following is a current list of the highest-ranking leaders in major Christian churches or denominations. The list is in descending order based on the number of congregants.
Catholic Church
Pope
The 266th bishop of Rome is Pope Francis, who was elected on 13 March 2013. The pope is the patriarch of the Latin Church, the largest of the Catholic Church's 24 autonomous (sui iuris) churches. He is also head of the college of bishops which governs the universal church. The Papal primacy doctrine of Catholics states that this primacy extends in perpetuity to the Pope and throughout the Catholic Church.
Eastern Catholic Churches
The pope is the supreme leader of these churches, and also, the head of the universal college of bishops. Each autonomous (sui iuris) church has its own patriarch or other presiding bishop:
- Coptic Catholic Church: Patriarch Ibrahim Isaac Sidrak
- Melkite Greek-Catholic Church: Patriarch Youssef Absi
- Maronite Church: Patriarch Bechara Boutros al-Rahi
- Syriac Catholic Church: Patriarch Mar Ignatius Joseph III Yonan
- Chaldean Catholic Church: Patriarch Louis Raphaël I Sako
- Armenian Catholic Church: Patriarch Raphaël Bedros XXI Minassian
- Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church: Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk
- Syro-Malabar Church: Major Archbishop Mar Raphael Thattil
- Syro-Malankara Catholic Church: Major Archbishop Moran Mor Baselios Cleemis Catholicos
- Romanian Greek-Catholic Church: Major Archbishop Lucian Mureșan
- Ruthenian Greek Catholic Church: Metropolitan William C. Skurla
- Hungarian Greek Catholic Church: Bishop Péter Fülöp Kocsis
- Slovak Greek Catholic Church: Metropolitan Ján Babjak
- Ethiopian Catholic Church: Archbishop Berhaneyesus Souraphiel
- Eritrean Catholic Church: Archbishop Menghesteab Tesfamariam
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Eastern Orthodox Churches
Patriarchate
- Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople: Bartholomew I of Constantinople
- Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria: Theodore II
- Patriarch of Antioch: John X
- Patriarch of Jerusalem: Theophilos III
- Patriarch of Moscow and all Rus': Kirill
- Archbishop of Peć and Serbian Patriarch: Porfirije
- Patriarch of Romania: Daniel
- Patriarch of All Bulgaria: Daniel
- Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia: Ilia II
Archbishopric
- Archbishop of Cyprus: George III
- Archbishop of Athens and all Greece: Ieronymos II
- Archbishop of Albania: Anastasios
- Archbishop of Ohrid and Macedonia: Stefan
Metropolis
Churches in partial communion
- Metropolitan of All America and Canada: Tikhon Mollard (autocephaly not universally recognized)
- Metropolitan of Kyiv and All Ukraine: Epiphanius I (autocephaly not universally recognized, canonical ordination not universally recognised)
Churches not in communion
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Oriental Orthodox Churches
- Pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria: Tawadros II. He also holds the title Patriarch of All Africa on the Holy Apostolic See of Saint Mark the Evangelist and is the spiritual leader of more than 16 million Copts.
- Syriac Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch and All the East: Ignatius Aphrem II Karim. He is also the Supreme head of the Jacobite Syrian Christian Church in India.
- Catholicos of All Armenians: Karekin II
- Catholicos of the East: Baselios Marthoma Mathews III
- Patriarch-Catholicos of Axum: Abune Mathias
- Patriarch of Eritrea: Vacant
Churches not in communion
- Patriarch of the British Orthodox Church: Abba Seraphim El-Suriani
- Metropolitan of the Malabar Independent Syrian Church: Cyril Mar Baselios I
Church of the East
- Catholicos-Patriarch of the Assyrian Church of the East: Mar Awa III
- Catholicos-Patriarch of the Ancient Church of the East: Gewargis III Younan
Old Catholic Church
- Old Catholic Archbishop of Utrecht: Bernd Wallet, the principal leader of the Union of Utrecht. As a primate of the Old Catholic Church in communion with the see of Utrecht, he is considered first among equals though he does not have jurisdictional authority.
- Prime Bishop of the Polish National Catholic Church: Anthony Mikovsky, the principal leader of the Union of Scranton.
Anglican Communion
- Monarch of the United Kingdom: King Charles III is the supreme governor of the Church of England, which places him as the titular leader of Anglican Christians in England.
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- Archbishop of Canterbury: Justin Welby is the principal leader of the Anglican Communion. In most contexts, however, the archbishop of Canterbury is considered just the spiritual leader of the Church of England. As primate of the Church of England and the bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury, he is the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion. Also known as First Among Equals, he leads through example and persuasion but has no legal jurisdiction outside England.
- The Presiding Bishop and Primate of the Episcopal Church is the Rt. Rev. Sean Rowe.
Other
- Secretary General of the World Evangelical Alliance: Thomas Schirrmacher
- Chairman of the World Assemblies of God Fellowship: David Mohan
- President of the World Communion of Reformed Churches: Najla Kassab
- President of the World Methodist Council: Bishop Paulo Lockmann
- President of the Confessional Evangelical Lutheran Conference (CELC): Rev. Gaylin Schmeling
- President of the Lutheran World Federation: Archbishop Musa Filibus. Although the president does not have any jurisdiction outside of his own regional church, as president of the LWF he oversees the meetings of the leaders of other regional churches.
- Chairman of the Pentecostal World Fellowship: Dr. William Wilson
- Chief Apostle of the New Apostolic Church: Jean-Luc Schneider
- President of the General Conference of the Seventh-day Adventist Church: Elder Ted N. C. Wilson
- President of the Baptist World Alliance: Tomás Mackey
- President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: Russell M. Nelson
- Presiding Bishop of the Church Of God In Christ Inc.: John Drew Sheard, Sr
- Executive Minister of Iglesia ni Cristo: Eduardo V. Manalo
- General of The Salvation Army: Lyndon Buckingham
- Prophet-President of the Community of Christ: Stephen M. Veazey
- Patriarch of the Czechoslovak Hussite Church: Tomáš Butta
- President of the Synod of the Reformed Church in the United States: Dr. Frank Walker
- Patriarch of the Apostolic Catholic Church: Juan Almario
- Overall Servant of the Members Church of God International: Daniel Razon
- Mar Thoma Metropolitan of the Mar Thoma Syrian Church: Theodosius Mar Thoma
- President of the Southern Baptist Convention: Clint Pressley
References
- "Statement by the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church concerning the encroachment of the Patriarchate of Constantinople on the canonical territory of the Russian Church".
- "The Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church |". mosc.in. Retrieved 2020-08-31.
- "His Holiness Abune Qerlos passes away". Ministry of Information, Eritrea. 3 December 2022. Retrieved 4 December 2022.
- "General Synod". Archived from the original on April 16, 2010. Retrieved March 21, 2010.
- "Why LWF matters". Archived from the original on 2009-07-26. Retrieved 2009-07-22.
- "Structures & Ministries: New Apostolic Church International (NAC)". www.nak.org. Retrieved 2020-08-08.
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