Note 4 — Chapter I · The Gregorian Church

The participation of the laity in church matters, especially in the election of its officials, is a chief reason for the essential oneness of church and people. Priests, bishops, and patriarchs, who constitute the three chief grades in the religious hierarchy, are chosen by the people.4 The approval of higher authorities is necessary in most cases, but this only slightly detracts from the importance of the rôle of the people. A married priest is the religious head of every parish, and he is elected either by a direct process of voting or by a deed of presentation. The religious council of the diocese proceeds to examine the ability and qualifications of the candidate, who is ordained if his examination proves successful; if unsuccessful, a new candidate must be presented, for a bishop can not of his own initiative ordain a priest. The laity have no voice in the election of the celibate priesthood, which is only natural since the celibate priests are not in any way connected with the life of the community. Furthermore, they do not constitute a very important element, for when Ormanian wrote in 1911, there were only 400 celibate priests as against 4,000 married priests.5