Tbilisi, March 18, 2026
Photo: Tabula
A state of mourning has been declared for the entire country of Georgia following the repose of its beloved spiritual father of nearly five decades, His Holiness Catholicos-Patriarch Ilia II.
The Patriarch was urgently hospitalized yesterday with massive bleeding from the stomach and reposed in the hospital later in the day. He was 93 years old, having spent the last 48 years on the primatial throne.
A statement from the Georgian government yesterday reads: “Mourning has been declared in Georgia. By order of the government, state flags will be lowered on administrative buildings throughout the country.”
The Patriarch’s body will be solemnly processed from the Patriarchal residence to the Holy Trinity Sameba Cathedral in Tbilisi today.
Orthodox leaders have expressed their condolences for the repose of the beloved Georgian archpastor. His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel of Romania called him “a venerable figure of contemporary Orthodoxy and a steadfast confessor of the faith.”
His Holiness Patriarch Daniil of Bulgaria spoke of him as “the angel of the Georgian Church, the pillar of unity of the Georgian people in some of the most turbulent and difficult moments of its recent history, the fervent man of prayer and wise shepherd of his flock, the reviver and renewer of an ancient thousand-year tradition, the meek and loving father of Georgia.”
His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow said: “He made a significant contribution to the maintenance of peace and well-being of the Holy Churches of God through his wise word, rich experience, deep ecclesial spirit, and high authority.”
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