|
Hey Adam, guess what, you win!
I have no clue where your friends
get the idea that the Pope has to
complete a series of tasks. Here
is a good, if unofficial, article
on the subject:
A bishop becomes a bishop in most
places by direct appointment by the
Pope (who is assisted in the selection
by the Papal Nuncio, or ambassador,
in that country).
In other places,
in the Eastern Catholic churches
in:
- Lebanon
- Syria
- Ukraine
- India
- and other places
bishops are elected by a synod of
other bishops and approved by the
Pope.
The idea of a "layman bishop" is
contradictory; as soon as one is
ordained a bishop, one ceases to be a layman. (A cleric is a deacon,
priest, or bishop.) Anyone not a cleric
or a religious (consecrated virgin/celibate) is a lay person. However, while
exceedingly rare and probably never done in modern times, it is possible
for a layman to be selected as a
bishop, in which case he is quickly
ordained deacon and priest before
being ordained a bishop.
The Archbishop of Canterbury has
never been a lay person. It is possible
they are confusing:
Your friends are right, however,
in that theoretically, any Catholic
lay man can be elected Pope (although
he has to be ordained a deacon, priest,
and bishop before assuming the office),
but again, this has probably never
happened beyond the first millennium.
By
the way, we take a cut of bet proceeds. ;-)
Eric Ewanco
|
