Shio III is new Catholicos-Patriarch of Orthodox Church in Georgia

The Synod of the Georgian Orthodox Church elects Metropolitan Shio III of Senaki and Chkhorotsku as the new Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia.

Shio III, Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia

Less than two months after the death of Ilia II on March 17, the Synod of the Georgian Orthodox Church has elected Metropolitan Shio of Senaki and Chkhorotsku as the new Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia, on Monday, May 11.

Born in Tbilisi 57 years ago, Elizbar Teimuraz Mujiri had long served as locum tenens of the patriarchal seat. He will take the name Shio III and automatically take on the titles of Archbishop of Mtskheta-Tbilisi and Metropolitan of Abkhazia and Bichvinta.

The synod meeting—held in the Georgian capital, Tbilisi9;s, Holy Trinity Cathedral—was attended by 1,200 delegates from across Georgia. The enthronement ceremony took place on Tuesday morning in the Svetitskhoveli Cathedral.

Cardinal Koch’s congratulations

“In the wake of the ancient and luminous spiritual heritage of the Georgian Church, illustrated by the witness and fidelity of its many saints,” wrote Cardinal Kurt Koch, Prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, in his congratulatory message.

“May your ministry help strengthen the bonds of cordial friendship and promote an ever more fraternal dialogue between our Churches,” he continued.

“I am certain that your service will reinforce the bonds of charity and unity which, by the gift of the Spirit, truly unite all believers in Jesus Christ, even if not yet fully, so that the Lord’s commandment may become ever more visible: ‘Love one another as I have loved you’.”

Cardinal Koch, along with a delegation from the Holy See, attended the funeral of Ilia II, celebrated in Tbilisi on March 22 and presided over by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I.

A theologian and cellist

Mujiri, who among his various studies earned a diploma in cello performance from the State Conservatory, was tonsured as a monk in 1993 with the name Shio.

He was later ordained a deacon and, in 1996, a priest. He completed his theological studies in Moscow, and also became an abbot in Tbilisi and later bishop, archbishop, and metropolitan (in 2010).

Speaking shortly before his election, Shio III stated that, with the Lord’s help, “the Georgian Orthodox Church—which has always been a unifying force for the nation, a defender of the true faith, of the Georgian language, of traditions, and of historical memory—will continue along this path.”

In the message sent on March 18 to locum tenens Shio following the death of Ilia II, Pope Leo XIV wrote that he prayed the Lord would grant him “light, discernment, and strength, so that he may guide the Orthodox Church of Georgia with the same pastoral charity that inspired the late Patriarch.”

Giovanni Zavatta
Source: vaticannews.va/en