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I. Admission to the monastic community is achieved through the monastic tonsure, which involves the cutting of hair on the head of the new monk. This is a religious rite, and not a holy sacrament. During the tonsure, which takes place in the monastery where the new monk will be enrolled, the novice takes monastic vows, promising to live in restraint and obedience.
The monastic tonsure is preceded by a stage of novitiate, which lasts from one to three years (art. 93). During the novitiate, the novice is required to live permanently in one monastery.
After this period, it comes the time for the tonsure. In that stage, it is necessary that the candidate reaches the age of eighteen (art. 93 Reg.). No other conditions are required. It goes without saying that the candidate must be an Orthodox Christian.
II. The tonsure is performed by a cleric who holds at least the rank of the elder of a monastery. If the abbot of the monastery, who is obliged to be present at this rite, is himself an elder (which is usually the case), he is the one to perform the tonsure.
The tonsure is confirmed by a record in the "Monachologion," which is a list of monks of the monastery. Each monastery keeps an accurate record of its monks, while the Monachologion includes the monk's secular name and surname, origin, age, year of admission to the monastery, year of tonsure, spiritual rank, educational background, and other important information (art. 94 p. 1).
Each monastery maintains a separate book for novices, which clearly keeps record of all information about each of them (art. 94 p. 2 Reg.). Additionally, each monastery keeps a special Monachologion of monks and novices in all its dependencies (art. 94 p. 3 Reg.).
To conclude, the general Monachologion of all monks of Mount Athos is maintained by the Holy Community. It also keep records of all changes related to tonsure or to the death of monks from each monastery and its dependent institutions (art. 95).
The ordination of a monk in Mount Athos occurs only after a proposal has been made by the monastic authorities. A layperson or a monk that doesn't belong to the Athonite monastic community cannot be ordained in Mount Athos. Any ordination performed in violation of these rules is considered illegal and invalid (art. 98 Reg.).
The monastic authority sends a corresponding invitation to an archpriest in order for him to perform the ordination, following the prior written permission of the Ecumenical Patriarchate (see below, § 18 II). If it is discovered that an Athonite monastery invited an archpriest to ordain a layperson or a monk not belonging to the Athonite state, the Holy Community is obliged to inform the Ecumenical Patriarchate about it and reprimand the monastery (art. 98).
