In several of the autocephalous Eastern Orthodox churches and Eastern Catholic Churches, the patriarch or head bishop is elected by a group of bishops called the Holy Synod. For instance, the Holy Synod is a ruling body of the Georgian Orthodox and Apostolic Church.
In Oriental Orthodoxy the Holy Synod is the highest authority in the church and it formulates the rules and regulations regarding matters of church organisation, faith, and order of service.
Read more about Holy Synod: Early Synods, The Russian Holy Synod, The Greek Holy Synod, Serbian Holy Synod, The Coptic Holy Synod, Eastern Catholic Churches
Famous quotes containing the word holy:
“now I discerne they goe on a Pilgrimage
Towards Loves holy land, faire Paphos or Cyprus.
Such devotion is meete for a blithesome age;
With sweet youth, it agrees well to be amorous.
Let olde angrie fathers lurke in an Hermitage:
Come, weele associate this jolly Pilgrimage!”
—Thomas Campion (1567–1620)