The Presbyterian Church in Ireland is the third-largest Christian denomination on the island, after the Catholic Church and the Church of Ireland.
It is also the largest Protestant denomination in the North; of its 295,000 members, just 15,000 live in the South, mainly around Dublin and in the Border counties. Over half the church's membership in the North lives within 15 miles of Belfast.
Other Presbyterian churches in the North include the Reformed, Non-Subscribing and Evangelical, and the Rev Ian Paisley's Free Presbyterian Church, which numbers approximately a further 10,000.
The Presbyterian Church in Ireland has about 560 congregations/parishes on the island, grouped into 21 districts called presbyteries. There are five regional synods, all under the chief court of the church, which is the General Assembly.
It is a highly democratic institution, run from the bottom up. There are no bishops, while those chosen to run a congregation/parish's affairs are elected. They are called elders and one is an ordained minister.
The church has more than 7,000 elders, men and women. They, including the minister, make up a kirk session, which is the congregation/parish's spiritual governing body.
An elder is elected to represent the congregation at presbytery level, along with their minister, and at the General Assembly.
It is the presbyteries which elect the moderator, whose role is that of primus inter pares, "first among equals". The moderator holds office for a year, chairs the General Assembly and is the public face of the church for the year.