Canon 26 Every church must have a steward from its clergy

Κανόνες τῆς ἐν Χαλκηδόνι Ἁγίας καὶ Οἰκουμενικῆς Δ´ Συνόδου

The Fourth Ecumenical Council · Chalcedon, 451 · convened by the emperor Marcian · Fourth Ecumenical Council: Chalcedon (451) on the map

Since in some churches, as we have heard, the bishops manage the ecclesiastical property without stewards, it has seemed good that every church which has a bishop should also have a steward from its own clergy, administering the ecclesiastical property according to the judgement of its own bishop; so that the stewardship of the church may not be without witness, nor its property be scattered as a result, nor reproach be brought upon the priesthood. And if he does not do this, he is to be subject to the divine canons.

Ἐπειδὴ ἔν τισιν ἐκκλησίαις, ὡς περιηχήθημεν, δίχα οἰκονόμων οἱ ἐπίσκοποι καὶ τὰ ἐκκλησιαστικὰ χειρίζουσι πράγματα, ἔδοξε πᾶσαν ἐκκλησίαν ἐπίσκοπον ἔχουσαν, καὶ οἰκονόμον ἔχειν ἐκ τοῦ ἰδίου κλήρου, οἰκονομοῦντα τὰ ἐκκλησιαστικὰ κατὰ γνώμην τοῦ ἰδίου ἐπισκόπου· ὥστε μὴ ἀμάρτυρον εἶναι τὴν οἰκονομίαν τῆς ἐκκλησίας, καὶ ἐκ τούτου σκορπίζεσθαι τὰ αὐτῆς πράγματα, καὶ λοιδορίαν τῇ ἱερωσύνῃ προστρίβεσθαι· εἰ δὲ μὴ τοῦτο ποιήσοι, ὑποκεῖσθαι αὐτὸν τοῖς θείοις κανόσιν.

The Fourth Ecumenical Council, the canons

English: this site's translation of the Greek beside it. Greek: the text of the Pedalion, as transcribed at users.uoa.gr/~nektar and corrected here. About these texts.