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The Press Office of the Ecumenical Patriarchate received this notification this morning.
This open letter of 13 Georgian
theologians (which represent a new generation in this country) was
published and widely circulated in Georgian media on 9th of
June 2016. It is addressed to the Holy Synod of Orthodox Church of
Georgia held on 10 June 2016. As a result Georgian Hierarchs ignored and
did not take into account this letter finally declaring that they are
not going to participate in Holy and Great Council.
Your Holiness and Beatitude, Your Eminences, Reverend members of the Holy Synod of the Orthodox Church of Georgia, metropolitans, archbishops and bishops
“Then the apostles and the elders, with the consent of the whole church, decided…” (Acts 15:22).
For a long time we observe carefully the
preparation process for the Great and Holy Council and we hope that it
will witness the unity of the Orthodox Church to the world.
Unfortunately, various major and minor obstacles emerged threatening
this excellent initiative. Some recent developments in the Orthodox
Church of Georgia suggests that the official delegation of our Church
will not take part in the Great and Holy Council, which will take place
from 16 to 26 June in Crete.
If our church refuses to go to this
pan-Orthodox council we will stand in complete isolation from the
Christian world. It is not hard to realize the very negative
consequences of such decision not only for the whole Orthodoxy but first
of all for the Orthodox Church of Georgia. Thus we ask humbly the Holy
Synod, which will gather tomorrow in Tbilisi on June 10, carry out the
commitment taken in January this year to participate in the Council in
the mid-June 2016.
The aspiration of the Orthodox Church to
show herself as "one, holy, catholic and apostolic church" and to give
unanimous answer to modern challenges are hindered and criticized by
fundamentalist and ultraconservative religious groups in our local
church. These extremist groups of priests and believers disseminate
false and incorrect information about the upcoming council. The
Patriarchate of Georgia does not reacting against these destructive
forces in a proper way. On the contrary, it sometimes even justify their
activity as a defense of Orthodoxy.
The orthodox world around us is divided
mainly in two major “camps”: pro-Constantinople and pro-Moscow Orthodox
churches. If the Orthodox Church of Georgia will not attend the upcoming
Council in Crete, it will confirm once again that our church is ally
Moscow Patriarchate which is an instrument of the Kremlin disgusting
policy in post-Soviet countries.
[The passage of detailed critique of the
critical views on the draft documents of the H&G Council which were
disseminated in Georgian religious circles before the Holy Synod is
omitted in this short version]
Lastly, we are convinced that the final
decisions of the Council will be crucial for the Orthodox Church of
Georgia as well as for the whole Orthodox and un-Orthodox Christian
world, insofar as they address the challenges that an Orthodox believer
faces in the modern world. We believe that there are no insurmountable
obstacles in the way of the Council’s proper functioning. The spirit of
the draft documents are in full agreement with the Orthodox theological
and canonical tradition and hence deserves to be received by any local
Orthodox Church, her clergy and lay people. Thus we support this
pan-Orthodox Council and pray for it. May the Father, our God through
his the only-begotten Son in the Holy Spirit bestow his grace upon the
assembled bishops and imprint their decisions with his wisdom.
Signatures:
- Givi Lomidze, PhD in Theology, Habilitand
- Zurab Jashi, PhD in Historical Theology
- David Tinikashvili, PhD in Church History
- Irakli Tskhadadze, PhD researcher in Sociology of Religion
- Kakha Gogishvili, PhD researcher in Theology
- Mirian Gamrekelashvili, PhD researcher in Theology
- Erekle Turqadze, MA in Theology
- Shota Kintsurashvili, MA student in Theology
- Giorgi Khimshiashvili, MA student in Theology
- Shalva Jikhvadze, MA student in Theology
- Grigol Chezhia, MA in Theology
- Beqa Mindiashvili, BA in Theology
- Vakhtang Kokolashvili, BA in Theology
This is a short version of the letter in English. For an original version of the full length letter (in Georgian), click here.
