The funeral ceremony of Ilia II, Catholicos-Patriarch of Georgia, Archbishop of Mtskheta–Tbilisi, and Metropolitan of Bichvinta and Tskhum-Abkhazia, is currently underway at the Holy Trinity Cathedral in Tbilisi.
The service began at 9:00 a.m. Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew is presiding over the ceremony, concelebrating with Metropolitan Shio and members of the Holy Synod of the Georgian Orthodox Church.
In attendance are Archbishop Ioannis of Albania, Patriarch Daniel of Bulgaria, Metropolitan Rastislav of the Czech Lands and Slovakia, Metropolitan Gabriel of Nea Ionia, Metropolitan Isaiah of Tamassos and Oreini, Elder Metropolitan Emmanuel of Chalcedon, as well as Metropolitan Hilarion, former Chairman of the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate, along with delegations from other Orthodox Churches.
Georgia’s Prime Minister, President, the Mayor of Tbilisi, and other government officials are already present at the cathedral, as reported by Georgian media.
Among those in attendance are the Honorary Chairman of Georgian Dream, Bidzina Ivanishvili, the Chairperson of the Milli Mejlis of Azerbaijan, Sahiba Gafarova, and the President of Armenia, Vahagn Khachaturian.
Ilia II will be laid to rest later today at Sioni Cathedral. Attendance at the burial ceremony will be restricted to clergy only.
Corridor of Tribute established from Holy Trinity Cathedral to Sioni Cathedral
A corridor of tribute has been established from the Holy Trinity Cathedral in Tbilisi to Sioni Cathedral in honor of Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia Ilia II.
Members of the Georgian Defense Forces were standing along the route, holding flags.