WASHINGTON, D.C. — “One city equals one bishop” was the topic discussed at the 23rd Orientale Lumen Conference in the nation’s capital June 17-20. The phrase refers to canon 8 of the Council of Ephesus (AD 431) which prohibited a bishop or metropolitan to infringe on the territory of another bishop by ordaining or otherwise exercising authority in the other’s territory. It also made reference to the apostolic canons (numbers 35/36) which forbade a bishop from ordaining in cities or places not subject to him. Canon 8 of the Council of Nicea (AD 325) also stated that there should only be one bishop in one church.
The panel of presenters explained the significance of these canons and discussed whether they are still applicable in 2019.
Adam DeVille, associate professor of theology at University of St. Francis in Fort Wayne, Indiana, said early cities were much smaller in area and population, compared with cities today. For instance, London currently has more than 8 million people and Los Angeles has a population of more than 4 million. As bishops should visit their parishes regularly, DeVille questioned how one bishop can care for so many people.
Orthodox Father John Erickson, former dean at St. Vladimir’s Theological Seminary, said the city for the early Romans was an urban center in the commonwealth of cities they called an empire. For them, a bishop was the head of the church in an urban center. He went on to explain that a bishop in early Ireland was the religious head of a tribe, not a city, which leads to the possibility that a bishop could be the head of a specific group of people, such as a particular ethnic group, or of a particular religious group, such as the Society of Jesus.
Anastacia Wooden, recent PhD graduate of The Catholic University of America, in her presentation answered the question, “What is church?” In the early centuries, the local assembly of Christians, who celebrated Eucharist together, was the church. Eucharist makes Christians one body, and each assembly is always the whole church because Christ is wholly present in each Eucharist, she said. In those early years, the role of the bishop was the role of a priest today. Parishes, as such, did not exist. So “one bishop, one city” referred to one parish per city.
Ukrainian Greek Catholic Deacon Daniel Galadza, fellow at the University of Regensburg in Germany, gave a historical presentation on the role of the bishop. He cited St. Cyril of Jerusalem and fourth-century pilgrim Egeria on the duties of the bishop. They wrote that the bishop was to be the teacher of the people and the leader of the people in prayer. They mentioned that only one bishop was commemorated in the Divine Liturgy.
Deacon Galadza said the role of the bishop today is to preside over the Divine Liturgy and to unify his people by keeping in contact with them and their needs. When dealing with the question of one bishop in one city, one must keep in mind the current duties of the bishop.
Father Andriy Dudchenko of the autocephalous Orthodox Church of Ukraine in Kiev, spoke about the situation in Ukraine. Kiev has six bishops with a population of just under 3 million people. The autocephalous Orthodox Church of Ukraine has two metropolitan bishops; one is retired. The Ukrainian Orthodox Church also has a metropolitan, as does the Moscow Patriarchate. Ukrainian Greek Catholics and Roman Catholics also have bishops based in Kiev.
Dominican Father Hyacinth Destivelle, head of the Eastern relations desk at the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity, explained the concept of territory. Originally, the church was an assembly of believers in a particular place to celebrate the Eucharist. A canonical territory implies one bishop in one city. But today, with the spread of Christians all over the globe in a diaspora, there are many exceptions to that rule. The existence of many churches under different bishops in the same territory is what currently exists and has to be taken into account concerning the one bishop, one city rule.
In video presentations, Cardinal Kurt Koch, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, and Eastern Orthodox Archbishop Kallistos Ware of Diakleia also commented on the conference theme. Cardinal Koch said the principle of one bishop per city is less important today; however, “it would probably be dangerous to alienate the territorial criterion.” Archbishop Ware said the primary role of the bishop is Eucharistic and not bureaucratic.
Caption:
Orientale Lumen Foundation founder Jack Figel (left) presents Metropolitan Archbishop Borys Gudziak of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Archeparchy of Philadelphia with an icon of the Three Holy Hierarchs during the annual Orientale Lumen Conference in Washington, D.C., June 17-20. (Photo courtesy of Orientale Lumen Foundation)
As published in Horizons, Aug. 4, 2019. Sign up for Horizons digital newsletter.