Global.Church Core Ontology v0.45.1
https://ontology.global.church/core#EkklesiaCoreScheme
The default GC-curated catalog of Ekklesia category concepts. Ten concepts cover the major kinds of ekklesia bodies recognized across global church-planting and ecclesial traditions: HouseChurch, Church, Megachurch, MultiSiteChurch, CellGroup, MovementCell, ApostolicBand, Network, Denomination, UniversalChurch. Body instances are classified into one or more concepts via gc:EkklesiaClassification (multi-source, time-indexed, attributed). Sibling axes — Form (gc:EkklesiaFormScheme), Ecclesial Mode (gc:EcclesialModeScheme), Gathering Mode (gc:GatheringModeScheme), Lifecycle (gc:EkklesiaLifecycleScheme) — describe orthogonal properties of the body.
ECC-APO Apostolic Band
A sent team functioning as ekklesia-in-motion — apostolic, mobile, pioneering. Exercises ecclesial life together (prayer, mutual accountability, leadership recognition, shared mission) while on the move. Commissioned from a sending body or organization. Aligns with gc:FormApostolicBand on the Form axis when the band is the body's primary form.
ECC-CEL Cell Group
A small-group body that operates as the primary ekklesia for its members within a larger cell-church or G12 system. Distinct from a HouseChurch by its explicit place in a larger movement structure (the cell is part of a multiplying network with shared leadership pipeline); distinct from a small group inside a Church by its claim to be itself an ekklesia.
ECC-CHU Church (2)A single-congregation assembled body in one place — the default ekklesia kind. Gathers regularly for worship, teaching, the Lord's Supper, and covenant community. Encompasses both traditional congregations and contextualized gatherings that function as a local church without formally adopting the label. Distinct from Megachurch and MultiSiteChurch by scale and governance shape. URI prefixed gc:Kind... to disambiguate this SKOS category concept from the gc:EkklesiaCommunity body class.
ECC-MEG Megachurch
A single-congregation assembled body whose weekend attendance crosses the threshold typically counted as megachurch (commonly 2,000+ in the US literature; thresholds vary by region). Narrower of Church when scale matters for ministry coordination, denominational reporting, or peer comparison.
ECC-MSI Multi-Site Church
A single church body that gathers in multiple locations under shared eldership, shared teaching, and shared covenant. Distinguished from a Network by the claim to be one church (one body, one eldership, one decision-making frame) and from a Denomination by the absence of independent governance at each site. Commonly modeled as one body realizing many in-City segments.
ECC-DEN Denomination
A formally constituted body of churches with shared doctrinal standards, governance structure, ordination process, and (typically) shared ministry / missions infrastructure. Distinguished from a Network by the presence of binding governance (synod, presbytery, conference, or equivalent) and credentialing authority over member bodies.
ECC-HSE House Church
A small-scale gathered body meeting in homes, cafes, or informal spaces, where the body itself is the primary ekklesia rather than a sub-structure of a larger congregation. Characteristic of DMM (Disciple-Making Movement), organic church, and Simple Church traditions. Typically 5–30 members; reproduces by multiplication.
ECC-MEG Megachurch
A single-congregation assembled body whose weekend attendance crosses the threshold typically counted as megachurch (commonly 2,000+ in the US literature; thresholds vary by region). Narrower of Church when scale matters for ministry coordination, denominational reporting, or peer comparison.
ECC-MOV Movement Cell
A reproducing cell within a Disciple-Making Movement (DMM), Church Planting Movement (CPM), or T4T-style multiplication frame. Functions as ekklesia (gathered body, mutual accountability, sacraments where contextually appropriate) while embedded in a multi-generational reproduction lineage. Distinguished from CellGroup by its movement-orientation (the explicit aim to multiply across generations).
ECC-MSI Multi-Site Church
A single church body that gathers in multiple locations under shared eldership, shared teaching, and shared covenant. Distinguished from a Network by the claim to be one church (one body, one eldership, one decision-making frame) and from a Denomination by the absence of independent governance at each site. Commonly modeled as one body realizing many in-City segments.
ECC-NET Network
A coordinating body of multiple ekklesia bodies under shared affinity, training, doctrine, or missional alignment, but without the formal governance authority of a Denomination. Member bodies retain decision-making autonomy. Distinguished from a Multi-Site Church by per-body autonomy and from a Denomination by lighter governance / accountability structure.
ECC-UNI Universal Church
The whole body of believers across time and place — the catholic (small-c) church. Use sparingly and only when a query genuinely needs to refer to the universal scope (e.g., a Universal-scoped EkklesiaSegment for historical or eschatological rollups). Most working data does not need this concept; mint instances only when a real query requires the universal anchor.