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Quiet Bishop Named To Lead Greek Church

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The Associated Press

Published: February 8, 2008

ATHENS, Greece - A low-key bishop described as an "enlightened conservative" was chosen by senior clergy Thursday to lead Greece's powerful Orthodox Church.
Church bells rang out and the lights outside Athens Cathedral were switched on to signal the election of Metropolitan Bishop Ieronymos of Thebes, 70, as the successor to the late Archbishop Christodoulos.

"In whichever position the church appoints us, no matter how high, we must know that our leader is Christ," the archbishop-elect said.

His enthronement ceremony is expected to be Feb. 16.

The restrained Ieronymos is likely to differ considerably in style from the charismatic and often combative Christodoulos, who died last month of cancer at age 69.

Ieronymos, however, is expected to continue his predecessor's effort to heal the long rift with the Roman Catholic Church.

Ieronymos takes the helm of the church in a country where Christian Orthodoxy is the faith of about 97 percent of the native-born population.

Greece's church is also influential among the other national Orthodox churches around the world.

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