On July 20th, the Orthodox Church celebrates the memory of the fiery and zealous Prophet Elijah the Tishbite. This day holds special significance for the Georgian Orthodox Church, as it also marks the name day of Catholicos-Patriarch Ilia II of All Georgia, Archbishop of Mtskheta and Tbilisi, and Metropolitan of Pitsunda and Tskhum-Abkhazia.
In honor of this occasion, Primates of various Orthodox Churches addressed heartfelt letters of congratulations to the Patriarch, recognizing his decades-long, fruitful, and steadfast leadership, his devotion to the Holy Tradition, and his vital contribution to Orthodoxy as a whole.
Here are some of the messages received:
Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew
With brotherly love, I embrace Your Beatitude and address you as follows:
We rejoice and glorify the Lord of love and wisdom who granted us the festive opportunity of partaking in joyful communion with Your Beatitude. We wholeheartedly express our warmest greetings on behalf of the Great Church of Christ and extend our own personal and fraternal congratulations on the occasion of your name day.
Feasts are always a time of glorifying the Lord’s name – above every name – a time of spiritual renewal and joy. However, your name day offers a particular occasion to exalt your unwavering commitment to the Tradition of the Church and your righteous struggle to bear witness to Christ in the world, sustained by the grace of Christ and the hope of the coming Kingdom of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
We thank the God of love, again and again, who has given Your most beloved Beatitude to His Church. We embrace you with a holy kiss and fervently pray from the depths of our hearts that the Lord will preserve Your sacred person, making you a flourishing and fruitful branch in His spiritual vineyard, for the benefit of the clergy and the faithful entrusted to you in the name of Christ.
Many years to You, Your Beatitude!
With love in Christ,
Bartholomew, Archbishop of Constantinople, New Rome, and Ecumenical Patriarch
Patriarch Theophilos III of Jerusalem
With a heart full of joy and gladness, Most Holy Brother, we greet Your Beatitude on the feast of your heavenly patron Saint, the Holy Prophet Elijah. As our Holy Father Isaac the Syrian said, “The saint whose name we bear is a guardian and guide along the spiritual path,” and as Saint Gregory the Theologian adds, “we renew our faith and seek his protection.”
In anticipation of the Day of the Lord, mindful of the commandment “Be holy, for I am holy” (1 Peter 1:16), and assured by the words of Saint Paul, we pray from the depths of our hearts that—as the Apostle instructs—you may “Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.” (Romans 12:10–12)
May the Lord strengthen you in your sacred responsibility for the protection, edification, and salvation of your Christ-loving flock, to the glory of our Holy Triune God.
With deep love and respect toward Your Beatitude, we kiss you with the holy kiss from the All-Holy and Life-Giving Tomb, and remain always united with you in prayer.
Your brother in Christ,
Theophilos III, Patriarch of Jerusalem
Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia
Your Holiness and Beatitude, beloved brother and fellow servant in the Lord,
I wholeheartedly congratulate you on your name day!
Strengthened by the intercession of your heavenly patron, the Holy Prophet Elijah, you are a vital example for your flock in fulfilling the commandments of the Lord and demonstrating unwavering trust in His divine Providence. By this, you fortify your people in the true faith and call them to uphold the ancient traditions of Iveria.
For many decades, you have faithfully fulfilled the responsibilities of your Patriarchal office, tirelessly laboring for the Georgian Orthodox Church, progressing in truth, piety, love, patience, and humility (1 Timothy 6:11).
On this sacred day, I offer earnest prayers that, through the intercession of your wondrous heavenly protector, whom the Lord illuminated “like the dawn” (from the hymns), you may be granted strength and abundant divine assistance in your leadership for the good of Holy Orthodoxy.
With fraternal love in Christ,
Kirill, Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia
Patriarch Porfirije of Serbia
Your Holiness,
Our dearly beloved brother and fellow servant in Christ,
Today, as the Holy Church glorifies the fiery ascetic and seer of God—the Prophet Elijah the Tishbite—your heavenly intercessor and protector, we send you prayerful and brotherly greetings, as a living expression of love in the unity of Christ.
The Prophet Elijah, a steadfast pillar of truth who, in times of apostasy and falsehood, cried out “as a voice in the wilderness” (Isaiah 40:3), calling the people to the living God—by whose prayer the heavens were closed, fire came down from heaven, and the dead were raised—continues to shine with unquenchable light, guiding all who seek the incomparable beauty of the divine image beyond the storms of this world.
Inspired by this burning zeal, Your Holiness has served the Lord for more than half a century—as a shepherd who seeks not his own, as a spiritual father who neglects not even the “least of these brothers” (Matthew 25:40), and as one who inspires all to live by the teachings of Christ’s Gospel.
We raise prayers that the Holy Prophet Elijah, through his intercessions before the Throne of the Most High, may remain a constant protector and defender of Your Holiness and the entire Georgian Orthodox Church entrusted to your care.
From the depths of our hearts, we cry out:
Many years to you, Your Holiness!
With brotherly love in Christ,
Porfirije, Patriarch of Serbia
Patriarch Daniel of Romania
