Patriarch Shio III: If we want our nation to reunite and both Georgian and Abkhaz identity to endure, our path is love, forgiveness and reconciliation

If we want our nation to be reunited and both Georgian and Abkhaz identity to endure, the path forward must be one of love, forgiveness and mutual reconciliation, Catholicos-Patriarch of Georgia Shio III said on Sunday, as Georgia marked 33 years since the fall of Sukhumi.

Speaking during a sermon at Tbilisi’s Holy Trinity Cathedral, the Patriarch reflected on the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross and drew a parallel between the Christian meaning of bearing one’s cross and the tragedy of the war in Abkhazia.

“When we try to escape or cast aside our cross, we distance ourselves from the Cross of Christ and from the Lord Himself. But when we accept and carry our cross with patience, humility and prayer, it will ultimately become spiritually beneficial to us,” Shio III said.

Turning to the events of September 1993, the Patriarch described the fall of Sukhumi and the war in Abkhazia as one of the most tragic chapters in Georgia’s recent history.

“Today, we remember a sorrowful and tragic event in our recent history. Thirty-three years have passed since the war in Abkhazia and the fall of Sukhumi,” he said.

According to the Patriarch, the conflict claimed around 30,000 lives and forced hundreds of thousands of people from their homes. He also recalled those who died while fleeing through the mountainous Kodori route following the fall of Sukhumi.

Shio III cited the late Catholicos-Patriarch Ilia II, recalling his words that there were no winners in the war and that both Georgians and Abkhazians had suffered defeat.

“If we want to carry this cross with dignity, if we want it to bring something meaningful for our future, if we want our nation to reunite and both Georgian and Abkhaz identity to endure, then our path is love, forgiveness and mutual reconciliation,” he said.

The Patriarch said he was encouraged by what he described as a shared desire in Georgian society for reconciliation with the Abkhaz people and a peaceful common future.

“This is what unites us our attitude towards the Abkhaz people and Abkhazia, and our understanding of how our future life and coexistence should develop,” he said.

Shio III also said a memorial service had been held for all those killed in the conflict, both Abkhaz and Georgian, as well as for those who died in the conflict in the Tskhinvali region.

“May God bless, reunite, protect and strengthen all of Georgia,” the Patriarch concluded.