Archbishop of Bodbe Jakob echoed the anxiety in society over a future Patriarch of Georgia in his Saturday church service.

“No one has the right to interfere in this matter; such fortune-telling from the outside is unnecessary. Whoever we vote for will definitely be elected, and any of them will be a worthy patriarch,” he said.

According to Archbishop Iakob, the future patriarch will need support.

“Only 30 archbishops are left in the Holy Synod, and we should preserve unity to serve God. His Holiness and Beatitude acknowledged God, Motherland and Human. He left a strong synod and we will undergo through all hardships but will not allow anyone to interfere.

If anyone wants to interfere, from within or outside, what will happen to those empires that interfered with us will happen to them. I am not referring to anyone in particular, but this is not a question. I also ask the clergy not to add to the unnecessary excitement. Let them allow us to do our affair, make a decision which everyone will rejoice in.

The main thing is that we all then serve God, helping each other carry the heavy burden and the heavy cross. This heavy cross, when God gives it to you, becomes light; God helps you, and if you force yourself to bear it, if it is not yours, it will be difficult.

Our church is in reliable hands. Let me assure you that the future Patriarch needs the assistance of neither government nor opposition. Everything comes from God. If we love God, if we have love for the Patriarch, we will act as befits a true Georgian, a true Christian,” he concluded.