News - Ruling party wants to declare Orthodoxy as state religion in Georgia, opposition media say

The ruling Georgian Dream party plans to declare Orthodoxy as the state religion in Georgia, sources said, reports the Georgian opposition media. Reporters have found out that a "mysterious" clause in the election program of the Georgian Dream envisages declaring Orthodoxy as the state religion in Georgia; this information was confirmed to them by several sources. After such an initiative was secretly received from the country’s authorities, the Patriarchate of Georgia on Monday allegedly held a consultation, with the participation of high-ranking clerics, on this matter. But the Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia, Ilia II, is said to be against it, arguing that it is not necessary, and the historical moment of such a move has not yet arrived. Also, the counter-argument of some churchmen is that in this case, the Georgian Orthodox Church will become less independent from the state. There have been no official announcements from the Georgian authorities yet in this regard, but Georgian Dream has openly stated that their goal is to "protect the identity and national values of Georgia." And the founder of this party, Bidzina Ivanishvili, has announced that in the near future the public will be informed about a “very important issue of existential importance for Georgia and the Christian faith.”