The____ governmental structure of the Church of God does not provide for local church ownership of properties.

• A. federal
• B. parochial
• C. centralized
• D. decentralized

Answer: (C)

Centralized governance concentrates authority and assets in a central body. In this arrangement, the central Church of God oversees property and financial decisions, so local congregations do not hold title to their own buildings or land. Instead, property is owned or held in trust by the denomination, with local use governed by central policies and oversight. This structure ensures uniform stewardship, accountability, and support from the center.

If the church were organized federally, parochially, or decentralized, ownership and control would be more distributed: local churches could own property or manage it with varying degrees of autonomy, which is not the case in a centralized setup.