ATHENS, July 1 (RIA Novosti, Alexei Bogdanovsky) -- The head of the Greek Orthodox Church, Archbishop of Athens and All Greece Christodolous said Friday on state television that he and the members of the Holy Synod had signed organ donor forms.

If any of them were to die suddenly, their organs could be given to patients in need of a transplant.

The church also asked clerics and parishioners to display solidarity in the cause, and forms will now be given out in churches across the country for anyone who wants to become a donor to fill in.

The Greek Orthodox Church has supported organ donation since 1999. The decision was then prompted by the death of a 12-year-old boy from Rhodes, who had waited 14 months for a heart transplant.