Most of us recognise that church governance or structure has developed into essentially three basic models or variations of those models. The episcopalian model or governance by bishops under the control of an archbishop or pope. We see this in the Catholic and Anglican churches. Secondly, the presbyterian model or governance by elders and supervised by the local or regional presbytery. Lastly, the congregational model which is essentially the free church model, where all decisions are made by the whole congregation including the hire and fire of the pastor and his remuneration. The congregational church may be a member of a denomination or independent but is entirely self-governing.
The following is a quote from an essay I wrote and submitted a couple of years ago. I have been wanting to share this thought ever since.