Does it bother you when your denomination's understanding of what…

Does it bother you when your denomination’s understanding of what a ‘bishop’ is doesn’t match with the Bible?

If we look in the Bible, the Spirit sent Paul and Barnabas out to do a work. Towards the end of that particular mission, they appointed elders in every church. Then we read that they completed the work they sent out to do. If they completed the work the Spirit sent them to do, that seems to imply approval for their appointing elders as well.

In Acts 20:28, Paul told the elders of the church to pastor the church of God over whom the Holy Ghost had made them bishops. In I Peter 5, Paul tells the elders to pastor the flock of God taking the oversight (related to the word translated ‘bishop’) thereof.

Titus 1 uses ‘elders’ and ‘bishop’ to refer to the same people. Titus 1 and I Timothy 3 give a list of requirements to be appointed as a bishop.

The standard, most common word used was ‘elder’– presbuteros in Greek. Over time, it divided into two roles, with one of the elders being called the ‘bishop’ over the city, though the New Testament does not have this elder-bishop distinction.

“Presbuteros” turned into ‘priest’ and something similar in German. The word ‘priest’ came to be used for the descendants of Aaron as well, the kohen (even though Old Testament ‘elders’– zaqenim– correspond with New Testament elders.)

So the Reformed movement took the word ‘pastor’ and made that their primary word for ‘elder.’ They copied the city government of Geneva which called their city leaders ‘elders’ and made it a church office, confusing later generations understanding of what a Biblical ‘elder’ is.

So in the Bible, a ‘bishop’ is someone who pastors the church of God. The apostles appointed a number of them in a given city to pastor the church there. They were chosen from within the very city-congregations which they were to pastor from the examples we see in scripture.

What is a ‘bishop’ in the COG? Someone who has so many years of experience being ordained with a denomination? I don’t see denominational ordination in scripture, much less this understanding of what a bishop is.

Does it bother anyone that many people operating in the role of ‘bishop’ are not recognized as such, and that one can be called a ‘bishop’ without operating in the Biblical role in the COG (Cleveland) denomination?