Psellos told Basileios, metropolitan of Nikomedia, that he knew nothing of his plan or how it affected the Great Church; the patriarch was hostile, complaining that it would cause him problems and wanting a different person to make the decision, perhaps himself. As the patriarch had set things up, Basileios was advised to come to the capital by the due date and explain everything. Maybe (in the view of Psellos) the patriarch had contrived to force Basileios to come to the capital then. Basileios had been given by the patriarch unprecedented freedom to celebrate the liturgy