Georgia’s Orthodox Church to elect new Catholicos-Patriarch tomorrow

Georgia’s Orthodox Church will have a new Catholicos-Patriarch tomorrow, said on Sunday Archpriest Andria Jagmaidze.

The election will take place during an expanded assembly at the Holy Trinity Cathedral in Tbilisi. Archpriest Jagmaidze detailed the procedures, noting that approximately 1,200 delegates from across Georgia are expected to attend.

Jagmaidze stated that, in accordance with the church administration regulations, lists of approved attendees have been prepared by dioceses. Entry into the cathedral will only be permitted to individuals whose names appear on the lists, and identification will be verified using ID cards.

Delegates are scheduled to be admitted between 10:00 a.m. and 12:00 p.m. Afterward, bishops will arrive at the cathedral and the voting process will begin.

The Archpriest also noted that the use of mobile phones during the assembly will be prohibited.

Part of the proceedings, including the opening of the assembly and the announcement of the final results, will be broadcast live. However, the vote-counting process itself will remain closed to the public.

At the same time, Jagmaidze clarified that anyone will be allowed to enter the cathedral courtyard, while restrictions will apply only to access inside the church building.