a formal Communion Service. All elders are members of the Kirk Session. They may also be members of the higher courts of the church. Each Kirk Session appoints one of its members to attend Presbytery, and on average once every four years, one of its members might be commissioned by Presbytery to the General Assembly. Since retired ministers, theology professors and others ministers with non-parochial charges are members of Presbytery and sometimes of the Assembly, "equalising elders" are required in the higher courts of the Church to maintain the principle that ministers and elders are represented in equal numbers. Elders are eligible for appointment to any function in the higher courts, including Moderator of the Assembly. When a congregation is unable to form a Kirk Session, for example when a new congregation is first founded, so-called "assessor elders", from neighbouring Kirk Sessions, may be appointed by the Presbytery. See also The Form of Presbyterial Church Government Ordination of women in the Church of Scotland Statistical Accounts of Scotland Christian religious occupations Local Christian church officials Church of Scotland