“In the modern world, people are led to believe that freedom consists solely in the rejection of all constraint; in truth, genuine freedom is, first and foremost, responsibility, faith in God, inner fortitude, and an honest and virtuous life,” declared His Holiness and Beatitude, Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia, Archbishop of Mtskheta-Tbilisi and Metropolitan of Bichvinta and Tskhum-Abkhazia, Shio III, in his address at the ceremonial event dedicated to Georgia’s Independence Day.

In his speech, the Patriarch addressed the future generation, emphasising that they are the hope and strength of Georgia.

“As the holy Apostle Paul says, you have been called to freedom: you are the hope and the strength of Georgia. Therefore, you must understand the true essence of freedom. In the modern world, we often encounter mistaken notions of what freedom is. People are led to believe that freedom consists solely in the rejection of all constraint; in truth, genuine freedom is, first and foremost, responsibility, faith in God, inner fortitude, and an honest and virtuous life. It is the overcoming of vice and passion; it is the obligation to do what is right and pleasing to God. Only a generation raised in the understanding of these values will be capable of preserving the unity of our country and the independence of our state.

Freedom must not be reduced to a mere political acquisition and an inheritance from the past; rather, we must labour and strive each day for its consolidation. Let our statehood and independence be founded upon love of God and of the Motherland, upon justice and peace, upon unity and tolerance, upon service to our neighbour and to the common good of humanity, for a strong state is built only when these virtues prevail in society and when the people are united by devotion to common national goals and to spiritual and moral values,” declared Shio III.