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Greek Church, United

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This is the name of those Christians who, while following, the Greek rite, observing the general discipline of the Greek Church, and making use of the Greek liturgy, are yet united with the Church of Rome, admitting the double procession of the Spirit and the supremacy of the Roman pontiff, and accepting all the doctrinal decisions subsequent to the Greek schism which have force as articles of faith in the Roman Church. They have been allowed by the pope the same law of celibacy as among the other Greeks: They are also permitted to administer communion under both kinds. The United Greeks sare found chiefly in Southern Italy, in the Austrian dominion, in Poland, in the Russian empire, and in Turkey. In Italy they are computed at 80,000; in Austria at about 4,000,000; and in Poland about 250,000. In Russia it is difficult to ascertain what their number is. As regards nationalities in Austria, they are divided into Romanians and Ruthenians the former being settled in Wallachia, Transylvania, and Eastern Hungary, the latter in Little Russia, Galicia, and Northeastern Hungary. The union of the Greek Christians of Wallachia and Transylvania dates from the end of the 12th century. The union of the Galileaan Greeks or Ruthenians is of much later date, about the close of the 17th century. The United Greeks, in 1868, had in Austria two archbishops, one for the Russian rite at Fogaras (with suffragan bishops at Szamos-Ujvar, Gran Wardein, and Lagos), and one for the Ruthenian rite at Lemberg (with bishops at Premizl, Kreuz, Eperies, and Mankacz). In Russia there is one bishop at Chelm. In European Turkey there is one bishop in Bulgaria; a patriarch in Antioch; three archbishops at Damascus, Emesa, and Tyre, and bishops at Aleppo, Beyroot, Bosra, Balbeck, Faral, Jerualam, Hauran, and Sidon. See Annuario Pontinfcia for 1869. (A.J.S.)