I Am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep. He who is a hireling, whose own the sheep are not, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. He flees because he is a hireling and cares nothing for the sheep. I Am the good shepherd; I know My own and My own know Me, as the Father knows Me and I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep.”
John 10: 11-15
The word “bishop” in Greek is “Episkopos,” and it comes from two words “epi” meaning “over” and “skopos” meaning “watcher” or “guardian.” And “episkopos” refers to an overseer or guardian, especially in the context of church leadership.
The Great “Episkopos” is Christ Himself. He is the overseer of the whole church, over God’s plan for salvation. There is always an icon of Christ on the Bishop’s Throne in a church and oftentimes, this icon depicts Christ in the vestments of a bishop, to remind us that He is the Great Archpriest, or Episkopos of the Church.
Christ appointed the Apostles to be the first “episkopi”, the first overseers of the Church. And they in turn appointed others, who appointed others, down to this day. Thus, our “episkopi”, our Orthodox bishops have Apostolic Succession, they trace their lineage back to the time of the Apostles, who received their commission from Christ Himself. Apostolic Succession is a very important concept in the church. No one can proclaim himself (or herself) a bishop. The ordination of a bishop has to occur with at least three other canonical bishops doing the ordaining. That’s correct. It only takes one bishop to ordain a priest or a deacon, but it takes many bishops to ordain a bishop, and this is to insure the apostolic succession of the episcopacy.
The bishop is an overseer of a diocese, a metropolis, an Archdiocese or an entire jurisdiction. There are different administrative titles a bishop might have. The Ecumenical Patriarch is still a bishop. His title is His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, Archbishop of Constantinople and New Rome. He oversees the church in Turkey and as Ecumenical Patriarch, he oversees the church in the diaspora, the non-Orthodox countries, such as those in Western Europe, Asia, Australia and North and South America. The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America is “underneath” the jurisdiction of the Ecumenical Patriarchate. There is an Archbishop who oversees the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros of America. Again, every bishop has a “see” that is associated to him. In the United States, the Archdiocese is divided into 9 geographic areas, the Archdiocese District and eight Metropolises, each administered by a Metropolitan, another title for a Bishop. I serve in the Metropolis of Atlanta, which includes 75 parishes in the Southeast. The see of our Metropolis is Atlanta and our Metropolitan is His Eminence Metropolitan Sevastianos of Atlanta. There are also auxiliary Bishops, who assist the Metropolitans and the Archbishop. Each has the name of an ancient “see,” so someone might have the title of “bishop of Diokleia”, a place in Turkey where a church flourished at a point in history, and while there is not necessarily a church there to serve, one cannot be a bishop without having the name of a place ascribed to them.
The primarily role of the Bishop is to oversee a diocese (or Metropolis, Archdiocese, etc.) and to be the administrative head of the entire diocese. He will visit each parish as often as he can, and when he does, for that day, he becomes the chief celebrant and preacher. Because it is his parish. The priests are his representatives when he is not present. The chief role of the bishop is as teacher. Just as Christ was teacher and shepherd, so is the bishop. It is only the bishop who can ordain priests and deacons. The bishop places the clergy in their various parishes, and oversees the progress of each parish and each priest. When a parish finds itself vacant, it is the bishop who assigns a new priest.
The bishops are also the only rank of the clergy that can consecrate a church. At a consecration, the relics of three saints are placed in the altar of a church and sealed to remain forever. As part of the service, cloths called “Antimensia” are used to dry off the Altar Table after Holy Chrism has been put on it. An Antimension is a small cloth that is placed on the altar table that is opened before the Great Entrance and Holy Communion is consecrated on the Antimension. The Antimension is signed by the Bishop whom the church belongs to. In order to have a parish, there must be an antimension signed by a canonical bishop. The Bishop is also the only one who can authorize a new parish to be established and who can give a parish an Antimension. One cannot just establish his own church somewhere. All of this happens with the blessing of the local bishop.
The Bishop is also called the “Pimenarhos” or the shepherd. He carries a staff, like the shepherds have in all generations. The staff is there to guide and sometimes prod the sheep, as well as to protect them from wolves. The Bishop is charged with protecting his flock and preserving the faith, imitating Christ, the Good Shepherd.
Continuing on the vestments of the priest, the phelonion is the robe worn over the top of the rest of the vestments. It represents the seamless robe that Jesus wore to Golgotha (even though now they are usually made with seams. The Bishop, instead of a phelonion, wears a robe called the Sakkos, which is equal length in front and back and has buttons up each side.
Remember, O Lord, in David’s favor, all the hardships he endured; how he swore to the Lord and vowed to the Mighty One of Jacob, “I will not enter My house or get into My bed; I will not give sleep to my eyes or slumber to my eyelids, until I find a place for the Lord, a dwelling place for the Mighty One of Jacob.” Lo, we heard of it in Ephrathah, we found it in the fields of Ja’ar. “Let us go to His dwelling place; let us worship at His footstool!” Arise, O Lord, and go to Thy resting place, Thou and the ark of Thy might. Let Thy priests be clothed with righteousness and let Thy saints shout for joy. For Thy servant David’s sake do not turn away the face of Thy anointed one. The Lord swore to David a sure oath from which He will not turn back; “One of the sons of your body I will set on your throne. If your sons keep My covenant and My testimonies which I shall teach them, their sons also forever shall sit upon you throne.” For the Lord has chosen Zion; he has desired it for His habitation; “This is My resting place forever; here I will dwell for I have desired it. I will abundantly bless her provisions; I will satisfy her poor with bread. Her priests I will clothe with salvation, and her saints will shout for joy. There I will make a horn to sprout for David; I have prepared a lamp for My anointed. His enemies I will clothe with shame, but upon himself his crown will shed its luster” Psalm 132
In some sense, we are all sheep, though we are called “rational sheep” in the hymnology of the church. We don’t need the bishops to think for us. However, we do need guidance from the Church which is led by the Holy Spirit, imparting grace to the bishops, priests, deacons and also to us.
I also want to add a follow up to the writing on deacons from a few days ago. Someone from the Prayer Team asked me some questions which I would like to answer.
How do we address a deacon? You can address a deacon as “Deacon John” as an example. “Father” is used for priests.
Is a Deacon allowed to Bless/Anoint the parishioners with Holy Unction? Yes, he may distribute Holy Unction and Holy Communion, both in services and to the sick, outside of church.
Is the Deacon able to serve carrying the Cross of Christ on Holy Thursday? The cross is carried on Holy Thursday traditionally by the priest. I suppose if the priest was unable to carry it, because he is older, then a deacon might do that, but generally it would be the priest.
Where does a Deacon stand while on the Solea during the services of Orthos and Divine Liturgy? The Deacon generally offer the petitions from the middle of the solea, facing the icon of Christ.
Where/how does a Deacon stand at the Alar during the services, directly in front of the Altar or on a slight angle? The deacon stands slightly behind and to the right of the priest at the altar table. Although when he is doing something at the altar, like preparing Holy Communion, he would stand directly in the center.
Can a man who was married in the Greek Orthodox Church in his first marriage get a divorce and then remarry and become a Deacon? Strictly speaking, no. However, because we have a shortage of clergy, and through the economia (dispensation) of a bishop, this has been allowed. There is strictness in the church and sometimes there is economia and these are applied with the discernment of the bishop.
