Georgian Patriarch Ilia II calls for dialogue amid protests

Ilia II, the Catholicos Patriarch of Georgia’s Orthodox Christian Church, on Friday said that every individual, regardless of age, “must denounce violence”, stating that everyone had to understand that, in these challenging times, sharp escalation posed a real threat to the nation’s greatest achievements - statehood and sovereignty.

In his statement, Ilia II emphasised the critical importance of avoiding uncontrolled developments and achieving dialogue through constructive means amid protest rallies in the country.

“Recent events in the country have clearly demonstrated the need for all of us to dedicate ourselves to peace. Each individual, young and old, must denounce violence and understand that escalating tensions endanger the foundations of our statehood and sovereignty. Every step must be considered carefully with this in mind”, he said.

“Hatred, bitterness, and resentment will solve no national issues and will only harm both ourselves and the state. Our Christianity ends where our love for our neighbor ends”, Ilia II noted.

The Patriarch Ilia II emphasised that love for the homeland united all Georgians and called on everyone to come together in prayer, stating “for the sake of Georgia’s well-being, with God’s help and inner peace, we may take the right steps forward”.

The Patriarch also noted that Georgia was an inseparable part of European civilisation, and it was “our duty” to strengthen and develop a European-type national state founded on our centuries-old Christian spiritual and cultural heritage and traditional values.