synod n : a council convened to discuss ecclesiastical business

Synod \Syn"od\ (s[i^]n"[u^]d), n. [L. synodus, Gr. sy`nodos a meeting; sy`n with + "odo`s a way; cf. AS. sino[eth], seno[eth], F. synode, both from the Latin.]
1. (Eccl. Hist.) An ecclesiastic council or meeting to consult on church matters. Note: Synods are of four kinds:
2. General, or ecumenical, which are composed of bishops from different nations; -- commonly called general council.
3. National, composed of bishops of one nation only.
4. Provincial, in which the bishops of only one province meet; -- called also convocations.
5. Diocesan, a synod in which the bishop of the diocese or his representative presides. Among Presbyterians, a synod is composed of several adjoining presbyteries. The members are the ministers and a ruling elder from each parish.
6. An assembly or council having civil authority; a legislative body. It hath in solemn synods been decreed, Both by the Syracusians and ourselves, To admit no traffic to our adverse towns. --Shak. Parent of gods and men, propitious Jove! And you, bright synod of the powers above. --Dryden.
7. (Astron.) A conjunction of two or more of the heavenly bodies. [R.] --Milton.

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A synod historically is a council of a church, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. In modern usage, the word often refers to the governing body of a particular church, whether its members are meeting or not. It is also sometimes used to refer to a church that is governed by a synod.

The word comes from the Greek σύνοδος meaning "assembly" or "meeting", and it is synonymous with the Latin word concilium — "council". Originally synods were meetings of bishops, and the word is still used in that sense in Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy.

Sometimes the phrase general synod or general council refers to an ecumenical council. The word synod also refers to the standing council of high-ranking bishops governing some of the autocephalous Eastern Orthodox churches. Similarly, the day-to-day governance of patriarchal and major archiepiscopal Eastern Catholic Churches are entrusted to a permanent synod.

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