“Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia Ilia II has fallen asleep in the Lord. He was a man of an epoch, and his passing is an immeasurable loss for the entire world Orthodox Church,” said Metropolitan Shio of Senaki and Chkhorotsku (Mujiri), Locum Tenens of the Patriarchal Throne.

Metropolitan Shio extended his condolences to all of Georgia on the death of the Patriarch, and remarked that Ilia II had created an entire era.

“It is very hard for me now to find the words I ought to say to you. Just a few minutes ago, the Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia, Ilia II, fell asleep in the Lord. He was a man of an epoch, and his loss is immeasurable for the Orthodox Church worldwide. I wish to offer my condolences to every Georgian, to all of Georgia, to our Church, and to all of Christendom.

He created a whole epoch. It is very difficult to speak of him in just a few words — such is the greatness of the person of whom we speak. Through him, through his labours, God brought Georgia back to the true faith. He was a great builder of our Church, both in the literal sense of that word and in the spiritual, and our grief is profound.

Once again, I wish to offer my condolences to everyone, to all of Georgia. And yet, when such great souls depart from us, there is also consolation in this: that we have gained a heavenly intercessor, all of Georgia, and each one of us, for he was our father, he is our father, and he shall remain so.

We belong to his epoch; our entire conscious lives have unfolded within it; he has shaped us, and we are his children. And so, may God strengthen us all, and I trust that his protection and his prayers will continue, and will nurture still further the love and the strengthening of our country and our people, both in spirit and in statehood. May God grant rest to his soul, and may his holy prayers be our help and intercession,” said Metropolitan Shio.