in 1857 drew up a series of "new Canons" concerning the election, synod, rights, duties, and income of the Patriarch and other bishops, which, having received the Sultan's consent, now determine all these matters. According to the new Canons the Patriarch is assisted in his rule by two assemblies, a synod for purely ecclesiastical matters and a mixed national council (μικτὸν ἐθνικὸν συμβούλιον) for affairs, such as cases of marriage, wills, and the administration of Church property, which are partly ecclesiastical and partly temporal. The synod consists of twelve metropolitans of the patriarchate, who sit in rote, the mixed council of four members of the synod and eight laymen elected by the Orthodox population of Constantinople. Both assemblies sit for two years and are then dissolved, after which new ones are elected.
When the see is vacant a new Patriarch is chosen in this way. Every candidate must be a subject of the Porte.[1] Each metropolitan of the patriarchate may propose one candidate, the mixed council chooses three candidates (by a majority of two-thirds); the list is then sent to the Porte, which may strike off not more than three names. The mixed council chooses out of this corrected list three persons, and the synod elects one of these three. Lastly, the Patriarch-elect must be confirmed by the Sultan, who can even now reject him. As soon as he is finally appointed the new Patriarch pays an official visit to the Grand Wezir, who gives him, in the Sultan's name, his berat,[2] and makes him a present of a handsome suit of clothes (a kaftan, cloak, and hat), a patriarchal staff and a white horse. The Patriarch-elect must then visit all the other Ministers of the Porte, and on the next day he is solemnly enthroned in his cathedral (St. George's Church in the Phanar), in the presence of the Turkish officials, who first read out the berat. The Metropolitan of Heraclea has the right of enthroning the new Patriarch (it is the last shadow
- ↑ He must also be a bishop who has governed his diocese without blame for at least seven years.
- ↑ The Patriarch has still to pay a large sum of money for the berat.
more tolerable. It also abolished the punishment of death for a Christian who, having turned Moslem, went back to his original faith, and forbade any one to persecute or abuse the religion of any subjects of the Porte.
