Georgian President: morally strong family is foundation of strong state

Georgian President Mikheil Kavelashvili on Sunday said a morally strong family is the foundation of a strong state, during remarks delivered at the Holy Trinity Cathedral in Tbilisi on the occasion of Family Purity and Respect for Parents Day.

Speaking after attending a special service dedicated to the day, Kavelashvili said family plays a central role in preserving Georgia’s culture, identity and statehood.

“A person first learns love for the homeland within the family and at the family hearth. In Georgian folk tradition, a mother’s prayer, a father’s guidance and the memory of ancestors have always been the invisible force placing a person on the right path. Like our ancestors, we too deeply believe today that a morally strong family is the guarantee of a strong state,” Kavelashvili said.

The President said family is “above all a moral school” that preserves the country’s unique culture, national identity and state consciousness.

He said Georgia’s history showed that the country’s survival had often depended not only on battlefields but also on Georgian families, where language, traditions, faith and love of freedom were preserved during difficult periods for the state and the Church.

Kavelashvili also highlighted the role of the Georgian Orthodox Church in protecting family values and paid tribute to Catholicos-Patriarch Ilia II, who established Family Purity and Respect for Parents Day.

“Today, when we speak about the sanctity of family, it is impossible not to recall with great gratitude the epochal legacy of His Holiness and Beatitude Ilia II. It was on his initiative that Family Purity and Respect for Parents Day was established,” he said.

The President praised Ilia II’s contribution to supporting demographic growth, particularly through his initiative of personally baptising third and subsequent children in Georgian families.

Kavelashvili said the spiritual legacy of Ilia II is now being continued by Catholicos-Patriarch Shio III.

“Under his leadership, the Church continues to firmly stand guard over peace, unity, family values and moral strength,” he said.

Kavelashvili added that amid modern global challenges, it was Georgia’s duty to protect and strengthen “the sacred space where love, loyalty and intergenerational ties live”.

“Congratulations on Family Purity Day. May God bless, strengthen and multiply every Georgian family. May God strengthen our homeland — Georgia,” he said.