Page:Russian Church and Russian Dissent.djvu/173

158 tical matters, strictly speaking, come under the immediate direction of members of the Synod, while others, specially charged with care of the schools and of the finances of the Church, are placed under the attorney-general. All business is transacted in writing, without oral discussion, or deliberation in open assembly; bureaucracy or circumlocution, so generally prevalent throughout Russia, is carried to an extreme, and, as a consequence, the real direction of affairs devolves upon the various departments, and the members of the Synod do little else than sign what is put before them.

For the nomination of bishops the Synod submits three names to the emperor, who generally chooses and appoints the first one on the list; they are subject to the authority of the Synod, and each one, in his diocese, is assisted by a consistory or council, the members of which are named by the Synod, upon the recommendation of the bishop. This consistorial body acts chiefly as an ecclesiastical tribunal, and has jurisdiction over all cases of clerical discipline, or those in which the clergy are interested, and over matters relating to marriage and divorce; its acts require the episcopal sanction for their validity, and final appeal from its decisions lies to the Synod. The functions of this provincial council, within its jurisdiction, bear a general resemblance to those of the supreme governing body, and are, in like manner, shared by several departments; a lay secretary, appointed by the Synod, upon the nomination of the attorney-general, and subject to his orders, is charged with duties kindred to his own; the same bureaucratic, centralizing tendency exists as at the capital, and a similar controlling influence is exercised by the various departments.

From all the dioceses and provincial consistories constant reference must be made to the central head, wheth-