Western Rite Orthodoxy - Organizations

Organizations

Unlike Eastern Catholic Churches which have an independent hierarchy and separate Code of Canon law, Western Rite Orthodox congregations of the Antiochian jurisdiction fall under the jurisdiction of their local Orthodox bishop. In North America, the Antiochian Church has established the Western Rite Vicariate and the Western Rite Commission for the purpose of coordinating the activities of Western Rite congregations and to provide a single point of contact for persons and groups concerning Western Rite Orthodoxy. However, all the Western Rite congregations remain under the direct supervision of their normal diocesan bishop, with Bishop Basil (Essey) of Wichita being the "hierarch of reference" and advocate for Western Rite issues within the synod of Bishops. In the ROCOR, as of November 2009, all Western Rite Orthodox congregations and monastic houses fall under the jurisdiction of the Metropolitan.

The Old Calendarists have two hierarchies which consider themselves "Western" jurisdictions and therefore have no liaison, citing the canonical responsibility of Bishops to their local territories, opting to simply treat all parishes of Western and Eastern Rite equally. Of these, the larger Western Rite Presence is the that of the Autonomous Orthodox Metropolia of the Americas, with the presiding hierarch, Metropolitan John (LoBue) of New York and New Jersey, the only Orthodox Bishop in North America who regularly employs Western usage in his monastery.