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The Holy Synod of Bishops has scheduled an election session of the Holy Synod of Bishops for February 18 next year, in which a new head of the Serbian Orthodox Church will be elected, confirmed for “Politika” in the patriarchate.
As of the conclusion of this issue, the Serbian Orthodox Church has not yet officially announced the date of Parliament. Judging by unofficial information, despite the pandemic and the difficult border crossing, the Synod did not exceed the deadline set by the SOC Constitution for the election of the first hierarch of three months from the date the throne becomes vacant. of the patriarch, which in this case is February 19. It is a common procedure that the Synod now sends an invitation to the active bishops and vicars of the Serbian Orthodox Church, informing them of the date of the election session of Parliament and inviting them to attend.
The provision of Article 43 of the Constitution of the Serbian Orthodox Church establishes that the quorum, that is, the minimum number of bishops present at the election, but also at all other sessions of the Holy Synod of Bishops, is at least two thirds of the total number of members of this body, including vicarious bishops. is the personal presence of at least 29 of the 43 diocesan bishops and vicars, representing a two-thirds majority, says the archpriest-staurophore of “Politika” Dr. Velibor Džomić, coordinator of the Legal Council of the Metropolitanate de Montenegro y el Litoral .
– The condition for the presence of deputies to Parliament is related to the possibility of their arrival, in a complex epidemiological situation and with the validity of various measures to move from the headquarters of their dioceses to the place where Parliament will be held. Taking into account that the largest number of bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church are located in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Croatia, and that, like all other citizens, with or without medical examination, according to prescribed measures for the movement, they can freely come to Belgrade, to conclude that in such epidemiological situation it is possible to fulfill the binding constitutional-ecclesiastical condition of at least two-thirds of the archbishops present in the Assembly – says Džomić.
He points out that it would be better to ensure the presence of all bishops in the Council, but that the constitutional provision that states that “absent bishops may authorize other diocesan bishops to vote in their place, provided that a bishop can be authorized only with one vote ”.
– The eventual justified absence of certain archbishops would not diminish the legitimacy of the elected Serbian patriarch, because they, in this way, voting through an authorized bishop, participate in the election – says Džomić.
Given that due to the epidemiological situation, public meetings are prohibited or reduced to a limited number of people, he adds that it is necessary to clarify that the SOC Parliament is not a public meeting in the legal sense of the word: Parliament is the maximum hierarchical ecclesiastical organ. and the Parliamentary Regulation, so it does not pertain to public meetings in the sense of that legal expression. The same applies to the work of the National Assembly or the Government of the Republic of Serbia, for example.
– The Constitution of the Serbian Orthodox Church, unlike the deadline for the convocation of the Holy Synod of Bishops for the election of the patriarch, does not explicitly prescribe the seat of the Council. The competence, but with a fairly broad freedom, to choose the place of the electoral session belongs to the Holy Synod of Bishops. It is logical that, as in previous cases, it is in one of the historical headquarters of the head of the Serbian Orthodox Church (Patriarchate of Pec, Belgrade, Karlovci), but it can also be programmed in another city or monastery. In the specific case of the next electoral session of the Holy Synod of Bishops in complex epidemiological conditions, care must be taken, mainly to preserve the health of the bishops and the people who come into contact with them, to respect health measures (adequate large room, physical distance, disinfection). . Compliance with these measures, important for the preservation of health in general, does not constitute an obstacle to the maintenance and work of Parliament. The election session of the Holy Synod of Bishops in complex epidemiological conditions can, to respect health measures, be held in the Temple of St. Sava in Vracar, or in its crypt, or in the church hall of a larger area . During the epidemiological crisis, our Church repeatedly asked believers to adhere to health measures, so their respect in this case would not disturb the course of the Assembly in any way – emphasizes Džomić.
He points out that it should be clarified that there is no “electoral council” as a separate body: the Serbian patriarch is elected by the Holy Synod of Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church, which meets in an electoral session with only one issue on the agenda: the election of the leader of the Serbian church.
Commemoration of the forty days of Patriarch Irinej
In yesterday’s session, the Holy Synod of Bishops made the decision to serve the late holy liturgy and forty-day memorial service for the blessed Serbian Patriarch Irinej on December 29 at the Saint Sava temple in Vracar. The Holy Liturgy will begin at 9 a.m., and the memorial service will be served after the Holy Liturgy, around 11 a.m., the Serbian Orthodox Church announced yesterday.
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