Hussite Church patriarch gives up post

A well-known patriarch of the Czechoslovak Hussite Church, Jan Shwarz, stepped down from his post following a conflict on Saturday over who should administer a special mass at the meeting of the church diet. Delegates voted in favour of fellow patriarch Josef Spak. Differences between church members are apparent: Jan Shwarz has been the centre of controversy in the Hussite Church in recent weeks, apparently at odds with bishops over questions of financing, property, and an alleged lack of democracy in the church's organisation.