What determines which church has a patriarch?

[Ryan]

What is the relation between having a patriarch and being autocephalous? Why, for instance, does the Church of Greece not have a patriarch? Or is the Archbishop of Greece equal to the Patriarchs?

[Herman Blaydoe]

What is the relation between having a patriarch and being autocephalous? Why, for instance, does the Church of Greece not have a patriarch? Or is the Archbishop of Greece equal to the Patriarchs?

The hierarchy is not really that well defined. Patriarchs are those bishops that have been recognized by all the Churches with a special respect and are looked to for guidance and leadership, but they don't necessarily have overarching powers per se, like the Pope does in the RC. In many ways, an autocephalous metropolitan has as much authority as a Patriarch for his geographic area of authority, perhaps even moreso, since the Ecumenical Patriarch, for example, has little more than figurative authority for the most part, to be perfectly honest. A patriarch cannot dictate to an autocephalous bishop and an autocephalous bishop can criticize a Patriarch although if he does it alone, he in turn may be censured by his brother bishops as a group.

Therefore, I don't think there is a specific criteria for "Patriarch" in that if a particular bishop meets this criteria, he suddenly gets "promoted" to Patriarch. But over time as a particular church grows in size and influence, the bishop may come to be referred to as a patriarch over the centuries. At least that is my understanding. I look forward to correction by those who know better.

Herman the Poohtriarch

[Kosta]

In the end all bishops are equal. The Patriarch of Constantinople is himself the head of the Orthodox Church in Instanbul which is a greek community, he also heads many greek jurisdictions abroad, and the greek consititution recognizes him as such (he also has jurisdictions of certain islands of Greece). So it would make no sense for the Archbishop of Greece to be recognized as a patriarch also.
These titles are mostly political and honorary.

[Andreas Moran]

he also has jurisdictions of certain islands of Greece

Crete and the Dodecanese, I believe.

[Isa Almisry]

Crete and the Dodecanese, I believe.

And Northern Greece.

[Alex Haig]

What is the relation between having a patriarch and being autocephalous? Why, for instance, does the Church of Greece not have a patriarch? Or is the Archbishop of Greece equal to the Patriarchs?

Politics unfortunately. The 19th century patriarchates were created for largely nationalistic reasons.

Personally I think (but this will never happen!) that we should stop using the term 'patriarch' and go back to the more ancient title 'metropolitan'. There seems to be a subtle papal idea among many Orthodox that a patriarch is 'better' than a mere metropolitan/archbishop/bishop and so his opinion is more important and his blessing more holy.

In Xp

Alex

[Father David Moser]

we should stop using the term 'patriarch' and go back to the more ancient title 'metropolitan'. There seems to be a subtle papal idea among many Orthodox that a patriarch is 'better' than a mere metropolitan/archbishop/bishop and so his opinion is more important and his blessing more holy.

Not necessarily the case. The Patriarchate in Russia was re-established in the early 20th century not because the patriarch was "more important" or "more holy" but rather because the Church realized that the unifying presence of a patriarch would be necessary for the survival of the Church through the upcoming turmoil. The patriarch became a focus not only for the Russian Church but also for the Russian people which allowed them to maintain their identity in the face of the the attempts of the Soviet government to destroy their culture and historical and spiritual roots. There was no "papal idea" but rather the fact that the Patriarch serves as the symbol of the spiritual unity and identity of the Church. In the case of the Russian Church, especially in the diaspora, the office of the patriarch (certainly not he person of the patriarch), gave the Russians both at home and in the diaspora an umbrella under which they were all united (and speaking as a convert in the Russian Church, the office Patriarch also serves as a symbolic umbrella for my own unity with the members of the Russian Church from whom I am separated by geography, culture and language)

Fr David Moser

[Andreas Moran]

What is a patriarch but a father who governs his family by paternal right?

[Theophrastus]

What is a patriarch but a father who governs his family by paternal right?

So God the Father is God the Patriarch?

[Isa Almisry]

So God the Father is God the Patriarch?

Evidently:

St. Ignatius to St. Polycarp:
"Ignatius, who is also called Theophorus, to Polycarp, Bishop of the Church of the Smyrnaeans, or rather, who has, as his own bishop, God the Father"

to the Magnesians:
"yield him all reverence, having respect to the power of God (http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06608a.htm) the Father...submitting to him, or rather not to him, but to the Father (http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06608a.htm) of Jesus Christ (http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/08374c.htm), the bishop (http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/02581b.htm) of us"

to the Smyrneans:
"See that you all follow the bishop (http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/02581b.htm), even as Jesus Christ (http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/08374c.htm) does the Father (http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06608a.htm)"

to the Trallians:

"In like manner let us reverence
the deacons as Jesus Christ;
and the bishop as the Father; and
the presbyters as the Sanctuary of
God, and college of the Apostles"

[Anthony]

From what I can gather, there have been several ideas behind Patriarchates. One early one (I think) was that the three original Patriarchates (Rome, Alexandria, Antioch) corresponded to the three continents (as known to the ancients). I guess this conception is still alive in the desire often expressed for an American Patriarchate. Then there was the Pentarchy, expressing the idea of balance and collegiality at the highest level of the hierarchy, under the analogy of the five senses - which was sometimes used to argue (no longer of course) that there could not be more than five.

In the case of Russia (apart from the fact that Russia can surely be regarded as a continent in itself?) I guess the Patriarchate was originally connected to the idea of Moscow as successor to Constantinople (and thus, for some, the Third Rome). This same idea of succession was, after all, behind the elevation of Constantinople itself to a Patriarchate.

I think the Balkan Patriarchates are not dissimilar in origin. Granted that they were (re-)established in the context of 19th century nationalism, but in two of the three cases this involved the re-establishment of traditional Patriarchates. And OK the latter too were national in a sense, but not quite the modern sense. I think in medieval Bulgaria and late medieval Serbia also, there were claims at different times to be the heirs, emulators or supplanters of the East Romans, and that the claims to a Patriarchate was related to this.