(RISU) - Today, on 18 March, members of the Election Synod of Bishops of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, which is to elect the new head of UGCC, began to arrive in Lviv.
The synod will be led by the Administrator of UGCC, Bishop Ihor (Vozniak) and, according to preliminary information, will be attended by 45 bishops of UGCC from Ukraine and abroad (Western Ukraine, USA, Canada, Brazil, Argentine and Australia). Five members of the Synod cannot attend it for justified reasons.
The Synod of Bishops of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church will begin its work on 21 March in Patriarch Josef Slipyj Retreat Center in Lviv-Briukhovychi.
"All the bishops of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, members of the Synod of Bishops of UGCC, especially, those who are under a legal obligation to attend it, are being convened to participate in the Synod," stressed Bishop Ihor.
According to the bishop, the Election Synod of UGCC is convened on the basis of a norm of Canon 128, Paragraph 3 of the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches.
The members of the Synod of Bishops of UGCC will stay in the place of holding of the synod until the confirmation of the choice by the Pope and the official proclamation of the new head of UGCC. All the members of the Synod of Bishops have active votes in the election. Each bishop is entitled to one vote. Voting through an assistant or by sending a letter is prohibited. Only members of the Synod, Secretary and calculation Committee can be present in the election room.
The Administrator of the Church is the chairman of the Synod. Two bishops from among the members of the Synod for the calculation Committee and the secretary will be appointed. All those present are obliged to keep in secret everything regarding the election during and after the Synod.
Usually, it is necessary to receive two thirds of the votes in order to be elected. The Particular Law of UGCCreduces this requirement to absolute majority after twelve futile votes. When the requirement is reduced to the absolute majority, the number of candidates should be reduced to two ones with the largest number of votes.
The elected person will have two days to accept or reject the choice. Rejection will lead to complete loss of these rights, however, the person can be reelected.
The elected bishop will send his own letter to the Pope for the approval of the election. After receiving the confirmation, he makes the confession of faith and oath to zealously fulfill his responsibility before the Synod of Bishops. After the proclamation of his election, the enthronement of the new head of UGCC will be held according to the liturgical books.
Let us remind that at a press conference on 10 February in Kyiv, Patriarch Lubomyr stated that on that day, Pope Benedict XVI accepted his abdication of the post of the Supreme Archbishop of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church. The head of UGCC submitted to the Pope the request in this regard when he reached the age of 75.
"Today, when I have no sufficient strength, I wish to pass my post to my successor who will effectively continue the work. For it is not my work and I am not the key. The key is the Church and the goal of our work is to serve the Church and we try to fulfill it as long as we can do it effectively," explained Patriarch Lubomyr.