The Greek Orthodox Church in Jerusalem has appointed a temporary leader to oversee the Church since the scandal-ridden Patriarch Irineos I was sacked on 6th May. Archbishop Aristarchos, General Secretary of the Jerusalem patriarchate, on Monday announced that the Holy Synod had unanimously voted Archbishop Cornelius, Metropolitan of Petra, to take the post until a permanent replacement is found.

"We had to elect a Locum Tenens to be the leader of the church until the election of the new patriarch," Aristarchos told Reuters. "We want to go to elections for a new patriarch quickly but we do not know how long it will take."

The former Patriarch Irineos I was involved in the controversy over a recent deal regarding church property in Jerusalem being leased out to a Jewish group. It is pointed out that it would increase significantly the Jewish presence in east Jerusalem, therefore his action was considered inappropriate from a political angle.

Despite the fierce criticism and pressure from the congregation, the former Patriarch Irineos I has denied any wrong-doing and has refused to resign. However, in a special meeting of Orthodox leaders worldwide in Istanbul last week, the resolution has decided they would no longer recognise Irineos as the patriarch.

The church is not allowed to dismiss the patriarch without the authorisation of the governments in areas where his congregation lives - Israel, Jordan and the Palestinian Authority. Meanwhile, the Greek government has reaffirmed the dismissal by issuing Irineos a new passport that changed his title to "former patriarch", Greek Foreign Ministry officials said to the Associated Press.

In the Holy Land, there are around 100,000 Orthodox Christians, most of them Palestinian. The world's Orthodox churches have 300 million followers. In the recent months, the Greek Orthodox Church has continued to be dogged by various scandals involving finance, corruption or clerics’ personal misbehaviours.