Presbyterianism

[ prez-bi-teer-ee-uh-niz-uhm, pres- ]

noun

1. church government by presbyters or elders, equal in rank and organized into graded administrative courts.
2. the doctrines of Presbyterian churches.

Word History and Origins

Origin of Presbyterianism¹

First recorded in 1635–45; presbyterian + -ism

Example Sentences

He later became a member of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church, a small, conservative denomination that broke away from mainstream Presbyterianism and emphasizes a fundamentalist reading of the Bible.

From Washington Post

The last of the 13, Dwight Eisenhower, proved the Mainline’s influence by being baptized into Presbyterianism early in his presidency, like a 16th-century prince accepting the state religion to claim a vacant throne.

From New York Times

Mainline Protestant denominations like Presbyterianism have seen their followings diminish in recent years.

From New York Times

In Scotland, meanwhile, Presbyterianism took root, and by the middle of the 16th century Catholicism was on its back foot across northern Europe.

From Los Angeles Times

It had experienced “a dramatic change from the closed-mind Presbyterianism” which once dominated Scottish life, he said.

From The Guardian