Adistrict superintendent (DS), also known as a presiding elder, in many Methodist denominations, is a minister (specifically an elder) who serves in a supervisory position over a geographic "district" of churches (varying in size) providing spiritual and administrative leadership to those churches and their pastors.
In the African Methodist Episcopal Church, "Presiding Elders are ministers who have been ordained elders, who are appointed by the bishop to supervise the work of a given number of churches and ministers within an annual conference."[3]
The Book of Discipline of the Free Methodist Church says that "Bishops, together with superintendents, give oversight to the ordained ministry through appointment, guidance and discipline."[4]
The Book of Discipline of the Primitive Methodist Church states that "The District Superintendent is the highest authority within the District and is responsible for the harmony and unity within the district. He shall provide leadership and direction for denominational activities and policies within his area."[5]
According to the Book of Discipline of the United Methodist Church "The offices of bishop and district superintendent exist in The United Methodist Church as particular ministries. Bishops are elected and district superintendents are appointed from the group of elders who are ordained to be ministers of Word, Sacrament, and Order and thereby participate in the ministry of Christ, in sharing a royal priesthood which has apostolic roots (I Peter 2:9; John 21:15-17; Acts 20:28; I Peter 5:2-3; I Timothy 3:1-7)."[6]
The length of office for a district superintendent in the UMC is usually up to six years but he may serve eight consecutive years. She or he may serve no more than eight years in any consecutive eleven years and no more than fourteen years in her or his lifetime.[7]
^Yrigoyen, Charles Jr.; Warrick, Susan E. (March 16, 2005). Historical Dictionary of Methodism. Scarecrow Press. p. 246. ISBN9780810865464. The officice of presiding elder, now called district superintendent in the UMC, was developed in the MEC as an extension of the superintending function of bishops.
^The Book of Discipline of the United Methodist Church 2008: Chapter Three. The Superintendency. Section II. Offices of Bishop and District Superintendent - ¶ 402. Special Ministry, Not Separate Order(retrieved 2 October 2009).
^The Book of Discipline of The United Methodist Church 2008, ¶418
