The Georgian Orthodox Church has taken a significant step toward electing a new Patriarch, as the Holy Synod concluded its session to nominate the Triprosopon (three candidates) for the vacant Patriarchal Throne.
During the vote, Metropolitan Shio of Senaki and Chkhorotsku received 20 votes, while Metropolitan Job of Ruisi and Urbnisi and Metropolitan Gregory of Poti and Khobi each received 7 votes, forming the three candidates who will proceed to the final stage of the electoral process.
The Triprosopon will be presented before the expanded session, during which the election of the new Patriarch of Georgia will take place, in accordance with the prescribed ecclesiastical procedures.
This development marks the next crucial step toward filling the Patriarchal Throne, with attention now turning to the final election of the new Primate of the Church of Georgia.
In an earlier report, orthodoxtimes.com noted that the inclusion of Metropolitan Shio in the Triprosopon was more than certain.
Sources in Georgia stated that Russia is already, unsurprisingly, seeking to play a role in the succession. Moreover, the country’s government, which can hardly be described as pro-Western, has expressed its preference for the successor to Ilia. That preference is the current locum tenens, Metropolitan Shio of Senaki and Chkhorotsku.
The late Patriarch had appointed Metropolitan Shio as locum tenens in 2017. Cynics recall that this decision came just days after a visit to Tbilisi by Hilarion, then Metropolitan of Volokolamsk.
According to information from orthodoxtimes.com, Metropolitan Job of Ruisi and Urbnisi, who entered the Triprosopon with seven votes, is a conservative hierarch, not particularly sympathetic toward Russia (he has supported breaking communion with Moscow), yet rather fervent and inclined toward prophetic interpretations, with all that this entails (the “mark,” the Antichrist, etc.).
As for Metropolitan Gregory, sources cited by orthodoxtimes.com describe him as a moderate hierarch who does not usually take positions or express himself publicly. “He is favorably disposed toward the Phanar, but he would never express it,” a source from Georgia noted. Nevertheless, he is considered a serious Metropolitan with a solid academic background.
