Patriarch Ilia II of Georgia has sent a message to the people calling for peace and unity while stressing the need to avoid violence and to preserve the sovereignty and independence of the country.
His message is related to the recent events that occurred during demonstrations, where acts of hostility and blasphemy were recorded, causing deep distress among the faithful and exacerbating social tensions.
The Patriarch emphasized the importance of constructive dialogue, pointing out that deviation from the divine commandments, combined with phenomena such as intolerance and lack of respect, leads to social and spiritual destruction. He recalled that the Christian faith is based on charity while condemning hatred and malice, which harm both society and the state.
In this context, he urged the people to unite in common prayer for the prosperity of the country and encouraged the faithful to participate in daily spiritual practices, such as the ringing of church bells. At the same time, he emphasized Georgia’s special role as an integral part of European culture, rooted in centuries of Christian spiritual and cultural heritage.
He concluded his address by invoking the saints who protect Georgia and asking for their prayers for the peace, unity and prosperity of the country.
Read below the message of Patriarch Ilia II of Georgia:
My Spiritual Children,
The events that have developed in our country over the past few days clearly demonstrate that it is an indispensable obligation for each of us to foster peace. Every person – old and young – must distance themselves from violence and realise that in our difficult times, a sharp escalation of the situation poses a real threat to the main achievement of the country – statehood and sovereignty! And by taking this fact also into consideration, they should determine their steps.
In addition, in order to avoid unmanageable processes, it is crucial to attain dialogue in a constructive manner.
Apart from that, our problem today is that we do not realise just how we are distancing ourselves from God and acting against His Commandments; we forget that lovelessness, cynicism, disrespect… which, regretfully, have become a habit for a part of our society, are destructive sins; hate speech and physical violence are the manifestation of this.
With mutual hatred, malevolence, rancour… we cannot undertake any of the national tasks but only do harm to ourselves and the state. Our Christianity ends where love for our neighbour ends.
My whole life, I have been praying for Georgia. Even today, I constantly ask the Lord that He might give us an understanding and gentle heart.
Love for our homeland unites us all; therefore, we call upon you: let us unite in prayer for the wellbeing of Georgia so that with God’s help and inner peace, we can take the right steps.
Joint prayers have great power. Our clergy serving in Georgia and abroad are given the blessing to ring the bells in the churches every day at 1:00 p.m. and offer a prayer service to the Most Holy Theotokos, and we ask our parishioners in Georgia and those living abroad to offer the following prayers to the Lord during the day, along with their personal canons: “Our Father”, Psalm 90 (Psalm 91 according to the English version of the Book of Psalms), “Open to Us the Door of Compassion”, “Rejoice, O Virgin Mary” (3 times), as well as the troparia of St. Andrew the Apostle, St. Nino, St. George and St. Nicholas, and finally, “Save, O Lord, Your People”.
Georgia is an integral part of European civilisation and it is our duty to support the strengthening and development of our nation state which is a European type of state, based on centuries-old Christian spiritual and cultural heritage and traditional values.
Today is the commemoration day of the founder of the Church of Georgia, Saint Andrew the First-Called. It is also the day of the commemoration of Saint King Vakhtang Gorgasali, Catholicos Peter I, and Catholicos Samuel I. Through their prayers and the prayers of the other saints who are the patrons of Georgia and through the intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos, may God grant unity, peace, and prosperity to our country.
A supplicant before God for you,
Ilia II
Catholicos Patriarch of All Georgia,
Archbishop of Mtskheta and Tbilisi and
Metropolitan of Bitchvinta and Tskhum-Apkhazeti
13.12.2024
