Patriarch Ilia II of Georgia celebrated on 25 December his enthronement anniversary.
On
this occasion, a festive Divine Liturgy dedicated to the 40th
anniversary of the enthronement of His Holiness Ilia II as
Catholicos-Patriarch of Georgia was celebrated Monday in the
Svetitskhoveli Cathedral in Mtskheta, Georgia.
Pat. Ilia II was elected to the primatial throne on December 23, 1977, and enthroned on December 25.
It
would have been impossible to pass these years without the love of the
people, His Holiness said during the ceremony, thanking the people for
their prayers.
“I am very grateful to everyone. I want to say that
these were the hardest 40 years, but we passed them thanks to God, and
His blessing and help. I would not have been able to do it alone,
without your help and love. Your love helped me survive. I am grateful
to all who pray for me and this is very precious to me,” the patriarch
said.
His Holiness Pat. Ilia is the most beloved and most trusted
man in all of Georgia, and the cathedral was filled with hundreds of
faithful clergy, monastics, and laity, who all came to express their
love and gratitude to their beloved archpastor.
Congratulations
were received from His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All
Russia. “Your Holiness and Beatitude, I heartily congratulate you and
all of Georgia with this important Church day,” Pat. Kirill wrote, in a
letter that was read out during the celebration.
“Your word has
authority and importance for all who know and love you, and who pray for
you and ask your blessing,” the Russian prelate also noted.
Representatives from the Georgian government came to congratulate the patriarch, including President Giorgi Margvelashvili.
“I
heartily congratulate you on your anniversary. Four decades ago, few
realized what today is clear for all—that your enthronement would become
the most important phenomenon in our history over the past decades. In
this period of intense and dramatic events, your wise guidance and
service full of love create a solid foundation for the unity and
advancement of our society. I congratulate every citizen of our country
on this day and wish for them that you continue to guide our spiritual
life for a long time” a statement released by the president’s
administration reads.
“Your holiness, the 40th anniversary of your
enthronement is a great holiday for us. I want to cordially
congratulate you on this very important day. Your service is the
greatest blessing of God from the spiritual point of view and a truly
historic event from the secular point of view. I am grateful to you for
your service to our nation and country. I wish you to serve our country
for a long time. A lot of churches have been built and restored after
you became patriarch. The monastic life has been restored and this is
your great merit,” Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili told the
patriarch after the Liturgy.
His Holiness was also congratulated by Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II, in a letter circulated by the British embassy in Georgia.
“I
warmly recall our meeting in London in 2011. I am glad that relations
between our people are deepening. I wish you health and happiness,” the
queen’s letter reads.
The patriarch’s enthronement anniversary was
initially planned to be festively celebrated with the participation of
Orthodox delegations from around the world, but the patriarch canceled
the plans in May, due to the “unstable situation in the world.”
Tr by orthochristian.com
Photo Credit: Basilica.ro