A protosyncellus, protosynkellos or protosyngel () is the principal deputy of the

bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

of an eparchy for the exercise of administrative authority in an

Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodoxy, otherwise known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity or Byzantine Christianity, is one of the three main Branches of Christianity, branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholic Church, Catholicism and Protestantism ...

or Eastern Catholic church. The equivalent position in the Western Christian churches is

vicar general A vicar general (previously, archdeacon) is the principal deputy of the bishop or archbishop of a diocese or an archdiocese for the exercise of administrative authority and possesses the title of local ordinary. As vicar of the bishop, the vica ...

Diocesan vicarial use

The protosyncellus is normally a senior

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

, archimandrite, chorbishop or

auxiliary bishop An auxiliary bishop is a bishop assigned to assist the diocesan bishop in meeting the pastoral and administrative needs of the diocese. Auxiliary bishops can also be titular bishops of sees that no longer exist as territorial jurisdictions. ...

selected to assist the bishop with his administrative responsibilities. In this capacity the protosyncellus exercises the bishop's executive power over the entire eparchy. The title derives from the Greek term '' syncellus'' (), from ''syn'', "with", and ''kellion'', "cell" (Latin: ''cella''). ''Synkellos'' was a term used in the early Church for those

monk A monk (; from , ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a man who is a member of a religious order and lives in a monastery. A monk usually lives his life in prayer and contemplation. The concept is ancient and can be seen in many reli ...

s or clerics who lived in the same cell with their bishops and whose duty it was to be witnesses to the purity of their lives or to perform the daily spiritual exercises in common with them. In the Eastern Church, they became the

councillor A councillor, alternatively councilman, councilwoman, councilperson, or council member, is someone who sits on, votes in, or is a member of, a council. This is typically an elected representative of an electoral district in a municipal or re ...

s and confessors of the patriarchs and bishops and were much trusted by them. They held the first place after their masters and had a seat and vote in the councils of the Church. In the course of time the patriarchs took two or more ''syncelli'', the most distinguished of whom was called ''protosynkellos'', Latinized as ''protosyncellus''.

Missionary use

Protosyncellus is also the title for the ordinary of an Eastern Catholic Territory dependent on the Patriarch, a missionary pre-diocesan jurisdiction, even if held by or vested in the eparch of an eparchy (full bishopric).

References

New Advent Catholic Encyclopedia
article on ''Syncelli'' Byzantine ecclesiastical titles and offices Episcopacy in the Catholic Church Eastern Christian ecclesiastical offices Oriental Orthodoxy {{RC-stub