Cyprus plans to hold elections for a new Metropolitan of Paphos

Archbishop Georgios of Cyprus. Photo: orthodoxianewsagency

Archbishop Georgios of Cyprus stated that elections for a new Metropolitan of Paphos will be held within three to four months after approval of an updated Charter of the Church of Cyprus – one that will shorten the electoral process and exclude the participation of laypeople. This was reported by Orthodoxianewsagency.gr.

According to the Primate of the Church of Cyprus, the new procedure will be simpler and more transparent than the previous one, and lay participation in voting will be abolished. He claims this will help avoid disputes and schisms that previously arose even among clergy. The Holy Synod, he said, “can sense the mood of the people and promote someone, without being guided by egoism.”

Commenting on the situation surrounding Metropolitan Tychikos, Archbishop Georgios said that he did not take advantage of the opportunity to sign a confession of faith and also repeatedly filed appeals both to the civil court and to the Ecumenical Patriarchate.

He also stated that Metropolitan Tychikos will be able to retain his priestly rank only if he changes his position.

The Archbishop believes that this situation has not harmed the prestige of the Church of Cyprus. “On the contrary, some tried to make it backslide into schism, and the Church responded and prevented this evil. I believe our prestige has increased,” he assured.

Earlier, the Greek presbyter and theologian Anastasios Gotsopoulos analyzed the canons for UOJ in Greece in order to clarify whether Metropolitan Tychikos of Paphos has the right to appeal to a civil court.

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