Speaking on Georgia’s Independence Day, Speaker of the Georgian Parliament Shalva Papuashvili stated that a century ago, the independence and autocephaly of the Georgian Orthodox Church (GOC) were restored. The revival of the Church as one of the pillars of Georgian statehood, he noted, was the result of the many years of labor of the late Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia, Ilia II.
“We saw the fruit of this great service a few weeks ago, when the church council elected the Catholicos-Patriarch,” he noted.
Papuashvili added that even today, there are forces seeking to limit the country’s sovereignty and its independent choice.
“Some today still want us to be ‘shackled to a golden chain,’ doing everything we are told but not being an independent state; they want us to rely on others rather than ourselves. This is impossible. The will of the Georgian people is firm,” the politician emphasized.
According to the speaker of parliament, 35 years ago Georgia regained its statehood, and since then the country has been on a path of strengthening its sovereignty.
“We saw what true autocephaly and true independence mean—when we ourselves, without any external interference, determine our own destiny.
A historical window opened 35 years ago when we reclaimed our second supporting pillar—our statehood, an idea lost many times but never forgotten.
For 35 years now, the people and the clergy have been walking the thorny path of state-building, sovereignty, and independence together—stubbornly, persistently, and firmly,” he noted.
Papuashvili called for honoring the memory of all those who fought for Georgia’s freedom.
“Glory to a united, independent, free Georgia! May God protect us!” the speaker of parliament concluded.
Speaker: the Georgian state and church are two pillars of national unity