Un-Orthodox behavior.

NEW YORK--At least to outside observers, the Orthodox Church has always seemed relatively free of the internal divisions that beset other Christian denominations. But a recent series of public disputes has altered that image.

Last June, a lay organization calling itself Greek Orthodox American Leaders (GOAL), publicly demanded the removal of Archbishop Spyridon, the leader of the 1.5-million-member Greek Orthodox Archdiocese in America.

In a letter sent to 122,000 of the faithful, they accused Spyridon of unauthorized financial expenditures, reorganizing the archdiocese without consultation, demanding loyalty statements from priests and parish councils, improperly firing four seminary faculty members--including the president--because of their decision in a sexual-harassment case, and general authoritarian behavior.

In reply, Spyridon sued GOAL in October 1998 for "misappropriating" the church's confidential member list in order to conduct the mailing. After the suit was filed, five hierarchs of the archdiocese's ruling synod condemned the archbishop's actions. GOAL has stated it has a statutory right to use the mailing list.

Other parts of the Orthodox world are also suffering from intrachurch conflicts. In Nazareth, the birthplace of Jesus, lay leaders have said they will not allow the Greek Orthodox patriarch of Jerusalem, Diodoros I, to preside over Year 2000 celebrations in the Church of the Annunciation, said a National Catholic Reporter story.

The mostly Arab laity has accused the largely Greek-born hierarchy of Jerusalem's Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of neglecting their parishes and selling off church property for personal benefit rather than funding pastoral, educational, and social work.