Holy Synod

In several of theautocephalous Eastern Orthodoxchurches andEastern Catholic Churches,the patriarch or head bishop is elected by a group of bishops called theHoly Synod.For instance, the Holy Synod is a ruling body of theGeorgian Orthodox Church.

InOriental Orthodoxythe Holy Synod is the highest authority in the church and it formulates the rules and regulations regarding matters of church organization, faith, and order of service.^{[citation needed]}

Early synods

The principle of summoning asynodor council of ecclesiastical persons to discuss some grave question affecting the Church goes back to the very beginning of the Church's history. Since the day when theApostlesmet atJerusalemto settle whether Gentile converts were to keep the Old Law (Acts15:6–29), it had been the custom to call together such gatherings as occasion required. Bishops summoned synods of theirclergy,metropolitansandpatriarchssummoned their suffragans, and then since 325 there was a succession of those greatest synods, representing the wholeCatholicworld, that are known as general councils.^[1]

Eastern Orthodox Church

Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate

The Ecumenical Patriarchate is governed by the "Holy and Sacred Synod", developed from the "endemousa synod"(the" resident "synod), which consisted of the bishops living (even if only transiently) in or nearConstantinople.^[2]^[3]It is presided over by the Patriarch of Constantinople and consists of twelve hierarchs, each of whom holds membership for a year, with half of them being replaced every six months.^[4]

The Russian Holy Synod

TheMost Holy SynodorMost Holy Governing Synod(Russian:Святейший Правительствующий Синод) was a congregation ofOrthodox churchleaders inRussia.It was established byPeter the Great,Stefan YavorskyandFeofan Prokopovichin January 1721 to replace thePatriarchate of Moscow.It was abolished following theFebruary Revolutionof 1917 and replaced with a restoredpatriarchateunderTikhon of Moscow.In modern Russia, theHoly Synod of the Russian Orthodox Churchis the highest governing body of the Russian Orthodox Church betweenSobors.It is headed by thePatriarch of Moscow and all the Rus'.

The Greek Holy Synod

The first other Orthodox Church to imitate the Russian Government by synod was that ofGreece.The national assemblies of free Greece in 1822 and 1827 began the process of making their Church independent of theEcumenical Patriarch of Constantinople.In 1833 the Greek Parliament formally rejected the patriarch's authority and set up a Holy Directing Synod in exact imitation of Russia. After much dispute, the patriarch gave in and acknowledged the Greek synod, in 1850. Since then, theChurch of Greecehas been governed by a Holy Synod exactly as was the Church of Russia.

A law in 1852 regulated its rights and duties. It met atAthensunder the presidency of theMetropolitan of Athens.Four other bishops were appointed by the Government as members for a year by vote. The members took an oath of fidelity to the king and government. Their deliberations were controlled by a royal commissioner, who was a layman chosen by government, just as the Russian oberprocuror. No act was valid without the commissioner's assent. There were also secretaries, writers, and a servant all appointed by the State. The Holy Synod was the highest authority in the Greek Church and had the same rights and duties as its Russian model, and was named in the liturgy instead of a patriarch.

After the proclamation of the Greek Republic in 1924, royal control of the Holy Synod naturally ceased, and with the elevation of the Metropolitan of Athens to an Archbishophric in 1932, the Archbishop began to be named in liturgies. Today, supreme authority is vested in the synod of all the diocesan bishops, who all have metropolitical status (the Hierarchy of theChurch of Greece) under the presidency of the Archbishop of Athens and all Greece. This synod deals with general church questions. The Standing Synod is under the same presidency, and consists of the Primate and 12 bishops, each serving for one term on a rotating basis and deals with details of administration.

Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church

The Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church is organized as the highest authority on all matters concerning the church. It comprises the Patriarch, all metropolitans, archbishops, bishops and vicar bishops of the church. The Holy Synod usually meets two times a year, in spring and autumn in ordinary sessions but extraordinary sessions are organized whenever necessary. Whilst is the supreme authority on all matters of the church, it is a deliberative authority, as all of its members are the leaders of the entire church, directly representing all of the believers of the RoOC.^[5]

Holy Synod of the Serbian Orthodox Church

TheSerbian Orthodox Churchis governed by a five-member Holy Synod. The patriarch is a permanent member, while the other four are bishops elected for two-year terms by theBishops' Council,a body that represents all the metropolitans and other bishops of the church.^[6]

Holy Synod of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church

The supreme clerical, judicial and administrative power for the whole domain of theBulgarian Orthodox Churchis exercised by the Holy Synod, which includes thePatriarchand the diocesan prelates, who are calledmetropolitans.

Oriental Orthodoxy

The Coptic Holy Synod

The Holy Synod of theCoptic Orthodox Church of Alexandriais the highest authority in theChurch of Alexandriaand it formulates the rules and regulations regarding matters of church's organization, faith, service's order.^{[citation needed]}

The Synod is chaired by thePope of Alexandriaand the members are the Church's Metropolitans, Bishops, Chorbishops and the Patriarchal Vicar for Alexandria.

The Syriac Holy Synod

The Holy Synod of theSyriac Orthodox Church of Antiochis the highest authority of theChurch of Antioch.It is chaired by thePatriarch of Antiochwith metropolitans and bishops as members.

Catholic Church

Within theCatholic Church,eachsui iurispatriarchalchurch and eachmajor archiepiscopalchurch has its ownsynod of bishops,which is exclusively competent to make laws for the entiresui iurischurch in question and is its tribunal.^[7]

TheCode of Canons of the Eastern Churchesmakes mention 115 times of the synod of bishops in this sense. It does not add honorific adjectives such as "holy", "holy and sacred" "most holy", as used in some Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox churches.

The Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches distinguishes between a patriarchal or major archiepiscopal church's standing synod and the synod of its bishops as a whole. It is the standing synod that corresponds to the term "holy synod" as used above. The standing synod consists of the patriarch or major archbishop and four bishops appointed for a five-year term. Of these four, three are elected by the church's synod of bishops and one is appointed by the patriarch or major archbishop, while another four are designated in the same way to replace any member who is impeded.^[8]A meeting of the synod of all the church's bishops is called when a decision is required on a question that only it is authorized to decide, or when the patriarch or major archbishop, with the agreement of the standing synod, judges it to be necessary, or when at least one third of the bishops request that it be held to consider some specific matter. In addition, the individual canon law of some of these churches requires that their synod of bishops be convoked at predetermined intervals.^[9]

In metropolitansui iurischurches a role analogous to that of the synod of bishops is played by a council of hierarchs.^[10]

References

^"Holy Synod".Catholic Encyclopedia.
^Adam A. J. DeVille.Orthodoxy and the Roman Papacy: Ut Unum Sint and the Prospects of East-West Unity.University of Notre Dame Press; 15 March 2011.ISBN 978-0-268-15880-4.p. 86.
^The History of Byzantine and Eastern Canon Law to 1500.CUA Press; 27 February 2012.ISBN 978-0-8132-1679-9.p. 164.
^The Holy and Sacred Synod
^The Statute of The Romanian Orthodox Church
^John Anthony McGuckin,Encyclopedia of Eastern Orthodox Christianity(John Wiley and Sons 2011ISBN 9781405185394), vol. 1, p. 559
^Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches, canon 110
^Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches, canon 115
^Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches, canon 106
^Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches, canon 155

This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain:Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Holy Synod".Catholic Encyclopedia.New York: Robert Appleton Company.

[1] "Holy Synod".Catholic Encyclopedia.

[2] Adam A. J. DeVille.Orthodoxy and the Roman Papacy: Ut Unum Sint and the Prospects of East-West Unity.University of Notre Dame Press; 15 March 2011.ISBN 978-0-268-15880-4.p. 86.

[3] The History of Byzantine and Eastern Canon Law to 1500.CUA Press; 27 February 2012.ISBN 978-0-8132-1679-9.p. 164.

[4] The Holy and Sacred Synod

[5] The Statute of The Romanian Orthodox Church

[6] John Anthony McGuckin,Encyclopedia of Eastern Orthodox Christianity(John Wiley and Sons 2011ISBN 9781405185394), vol. 1, p. 559

[7] Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches, canon 110

[8] Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches, canon 115

[9] Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches, canon 106

[10] Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches, canon 155

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