The Rev. Eugene Yackanich has been chosen as the administrator to run the Byzantine Catholic Archeparchy of Pittsburgh until Pope Benedict XVI names its next archbishop.
"I was surprised and honored," said Father Yackanich, who had gone into the meeting of the archeparchy's College of Consultors with someone else in mind. The meeting was held after Friday's funeral for Metropolitan Basil Schott, who died June 10. Archeparchy is the Eastern Catholic term for archdiocese.
Eastern Catholic churches are self-governing in union with the pope, but with liturgy and customs resembling those of Eastern Orthodoxy. Their process for selecting a new bishop differs from that of Latin Catholic dioceses. The Byzantine Catholic Archeparchy of Pittsburgh is the only self-governing Eastern Catholic Church headquartered in the United States.