Patriarchal candidate Shio: church must follow path laid down by Ilia II

One of the candidates for the patriarchal throne, Metropolitan Shio, has said the Georgian Orthodox Church can respond to modern challenges by following the path established by the late Catholicos-Patriarch Ilia II.

Speaking at the opening of the expanded Church Council at the Holy Trinity Cathedral in Tbilisi, Metropolitan Shio said the late patriarch’s leadership offered answers to questions surrounding the Church’s future, unity and mission in contemporary society.

“We have often reflected on how the Church should confront modern challenges, how it should protect its flock and its future,” he said. “The answers to these questions lie in the wise steps and path laid down by Catholicos-Patriarch Ilia II.”

Shio described the Georgian Orthodox Church as a central pillar of Georgia’s national identity, statehood and cultural consciousness since Christianity was declared the state religion more than 1,700 years ago.

He paid tribute to generations of Georgian patriarchs and religious leaders, including Ilia II, whose death in March triggered the process to elect a new head of the Church.

According to Shio, more than 40 days after Ilia II’s death, the late patriarch continued to unite the nation spiritually through the legacy of his decades-long service.

The metropolitan highlighted a broad range of areas in which Ilia II had shaped Church life, including missionary work, monastic life, Church administration, relations between Church and state, support for education and science, youth development, preservation of traditional Georgian chanting and protection of family values.

He also referred to the Church’s continued concern for the occupied regions of Abkhazia and Tskhinvali. 

Shio said respect for Ilia II’s legacy placed a responsibility on the Church to continue serving with “love, mutual respect and unity”, which he described as the late patriarch’s foremost concern.

Addressing delegates gathered at the council, he called the election of a new patriarch a historic moment for the Church and the nation.

“We stand before a historic event,” he said. “With unity and agreement, we must choose the new shepherd of the Georgian Orthodox Apostolic Autocephalous Church.”

He added that despite the challenges of modern life, the Church would continue its historical role as a defender of faith, the Georgian language, traditions and historical memory.

At the conclusion of his remarks, Metropolitan Shio formally declared the 14th Church Council of the Georgian Orthodox Church open.