TBILISI, September 30 – A delegation from the Moscow Patriarchate met Georgian Orthodox Church leader Shio III in Tbilisi on Wednesday. The main topic was the status of church life in Abkhazia and South Ossetia.
The Russian delegation was led by Metropolitan Anthony of Volokolamsk, who heads the Moscow Patriarchate’s Department for External Church Relations. Senior Georgian clergy were also present at the patriarchal residence.
According to Archpriest Andria Jagmaidze, head of public relations for the Georgian Patriarchate, the Russian delegation conveyed congratulations from the Moscow Patriarchate and the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia to Shio III on his selection as Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia.
Jagmaidze said the meeting then turned mainly to what the Georgian Church considers its most serious problems in the occupied territories of Abkhazia and the Tskhinvali region, which is a common term for South Ossetia in Georgian.
He said the issue was described as a major obstacle in relations between the two peoples and an “unhealed wound” for the Georgian Church and for Georgia as a whole.
At the same time, both sides said there was room for practical work on church affairs in the two regions.
“Both sides noted that there is a certain resource for us to work on issues that will regulate church life in both regions,” Jagmaidze said.
He said the meeting left hope that further steps could be found to bring some improvement to what he described as painful unresolved issues.
The talks also included a discussion of the work and legacy of former Catholicos-Patriarch Ilia II.
The Georgian Patriarchate did not announce any concrete agreement or timetable for further talks. But Jagmaidze’s comments suggested that both churches see some scope for continued discussion over how religious life is organized in the two breakaway regions.
