Georgia to consider legal recognition of church weddings

Jvristsera, church weddings, are not legally recognized in today’s Georgia. (Interpressnews.)

TBILISI, DFWatch–Georgia may consider granting legal status to weddings conducted by the church.

This issue will be studied in the near future by the commission which handles relations between the state and the Orthodox Church.

Today, a marriage certificate issued by the church does not carry legal power. Couples tying the knot therefore have to visit the civil registry as well to sign the official document formalizing their marriage.

The commission staff has changed and its new leader is Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili. It also consists of new subgroups, one of which is a group which works on determining the legal status of wedding ceremonies conducted by the church.

According to the most recent census data, about 84 percent of Georgians are Orthodox Christians. 9.9 percent are Muslim, the rest are Catholic, Jewish or other.