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.
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.
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:
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