Patriarch Shio III: Only fidelity to the Lord will lead our nation to salvation, strengthen Georgia, and restore its unity
Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia Shio III has urged the faithful to remain steadfast in their devotion to Christ, declaring that only fidelity to God will preserve, strengthen, and reunite the country.
Delivering a sermon after a thanksgiving prayer service marking the Feast of the 100,000 Georgian Martyrs, attended by President Mikheil Kavelashvili, the Patriarch reflected on martyrdom as the foundation of Christian resilience throughout history, from the early apostles and Emperor Constantine to the collapse of the 20th-century atheist regime.
“Dear brothers and sisters, let us pray to the 100,000 Holy Georgian Martyrs to teach us to be faithful witnesses to our Lord Jesus Christ. As Catholicos-Patriarch Ilia II has noted, this is a day of spiritual illumination and triumph for the Georgian nation. In Greek, the word martys means both witness and martyr, and the saints bear witness that in Christ, death holds no power,” Shio III said.
Linking the 1,700th anniversary of Georgia’s adoption of Christianity to the nation’s future, the Patriarch called on Georgians to prove worthy of their ancestors’ sacrifice.
“Today we reflect on our country’s past, which proves that walking this path alone saved our nation and brought us to the present day. We think of our nation’s future, knowing that faithfulness to this path alone will save us and lead us to the Kingdom of Heaven. We must remain loyal to this way so that our nation and our country may grow stronger, endure, and be made whole once more,” the Patriarch has said.
