The Moscow Patriarchate is accused of intruding an area which is under the canonical jurisdiction of Georgian Orthodox Church.
In particular, according to a complaint published by the Association of Religion Experts, representatives of the Russian Orthodox Church conducted religious services in an area which is under the canonical jurisdiction of the Georgian Orthodox Church and has been illegally occupied by the Russian army during the Russian invasion of Western Georgia in 2008.
According to the announcement, the Russians were not content to illegally occupy the Georgian territories during the war but are gradually carrying out a church invasion.
Read the full announcement:
As it became known on January 7, 2021, in gross violation of the law, in the Russian-occupied Tskhinvali (Holy Trinity Cathedral), which is under the canonical jurisdiction of the Georgian Orthodox Church, a service was conducted by Vladikavkaz.
The Russian Church has been shamelessly digging into the canonical territory of the Georgian Apostolic Church many times, which we consider inadmissible.
We call on the Georgian Patriarchate and the Metropolitan of Nikozi and Tskhinvali, Isaia (Chanturia) to respond immediately to the incident and send a public, protest note to the Russian Patriarch. We appeal to the leaders of the Orthodox Churches to assess the anti-canonical actions of the Russian Church towards the Georgian Apostolic Church.
