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The most important monastery in the island is that of Kykou; this is situated upon the mountains at an elevation of 3800 feet above the sea and it comprises an establishment of sixty monks, with a gross revenue from various properties in different portions of the country estimated together with donations at about £5000 per annum. The monastery of Mahera estimates its revenue at £2000 ; that of Fameromeni at Nicosia, at £2000 without any expenditure, as the three monks, together with one servant, are paid by the extra incomes of the Church. There are many monasteries throughout the island, and all with the exception of Kykou and St. Andrea, at the eastern point of Cyprus, pay a certain portion of their revenue to the bishop of the diocese. The two monasteries I have excepted are perfectly independent of all ecclesiastical control in revenue and. finance. Considerable caution will be necessary in arranging the land question with these numerous establishments which have hitherto enjoyed a peculiar independence Up to the present time the income of the bishops has been derived from the annual payments from monasteries, by the canonical tax paid by every church ; from the alms (Zitia), which is a tax levied upon all crops; from the dish exposed for offerings in church while they officiate, and from various ordination fees and marriage licenses. From the inquiries I made in various del pendable quarters, the bishops are not generally be-loved either by the monks, priests, or public ; but this absence of appreciation may be due to the continual demands upon the funds of monasteries and the pockets of the peasantry, more than to any personal peculiarities of character. There are stories of neglect of duty and misappropriation of funds intended for charitable purposes, which I should decline to believe possible among ecclesiastics of such devout principles and high position. The Archbishop is much beloved, and is loudly praised by all classes of the inhabitants, to whom he owes his election as supreme head of the Church after the following manner : —
In the event of death, the vacant see of Cyprus is represented by the Bishop of Baffo, and the new archbishop must be elected by the people. The bishop occupies the position of president of an ecclesiastical council, to which representatives arc sent from every district, charged with the votes of the inhabitants in favour of the archbishop. Upon his election, the approval and confirmation of his appointment must be obtained by an imperial decree before the archbishop can officiate. In the same manner every bishop is elected by the people of the district, and their representatives are sent to Nicosia, where the archbishop presides over his council, or court; but the new bishop must also be confirmed in his position by an imperial decree. Should an archbishop be guilty of any crime, either civil or ecclesiastical, he may be deposed by the head of the Church at Constantinople, acting in conjunction with the Turkish government, at the request of the inhabitants of Cyprus.
Bishops may be deposed by the archbishop, who would in such a case assemble the Synod, composed of the heads of clergy in his presidency. Before this tribunal a bishop would be summoned to appear in case of an accusation, and the trial would take place in open court; the power of punishment or absolution remaining in the hands of the archbishop. The Turkish government appears to have held a peculiar position in relation to the Greek Church in Cyprus, as, although acting in conjunction and in harmony with the customs of the inhabitants, it reserved the right 'of supreme authority in special cases ; thus at various epochs the Turkish government deposed the Archbishops Chrissanthon and Panareton, hanged the Archbishop Kipriano, and banished the Archbishops Joachim and Damaskino. From the universal complaints, there can be little doubt that the schools that should be established from funds specially invested for that purpose in the hands of certain monasteries, bishops, &c. are grossly neglected, and it has already been suggested that a commission should be instituted by the British authorities, under the presidency of the archbishop, for a rigid investigation of the resources of all monasteries and the actual revenue of bishoprics, together with the disbursement of all sums that should have been expended either for education or for charitable purposes.
The tithes exacted by the bishops from the peasantry add seriously to the imposts of ordinary taxation, and there is every probability of a reform being demanded by the inhabitants at the hands of the British administration. When under Turkish rule, the Greek Church enjoyed not only perfect freedom, but an immunity from taxation, as, although they were legally liable, the law was never enforced upon the clergy. The English government has determined upon the observance of all laws by all classes, and the Church has awakened to the fact that there is no exception.
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