“Ilia II was and remains a symbol of national unity,” Tbilisi Mayor Kakha Kaladze led the city government in a minute of silence at this morning’s municipal council session in tribute to Catholicos-Patriarch Ilia II.

Speaking to members of the capital’s government, Kaladze said that the grief felt today extends across the whole of Georgia.

“Today, all of Georgia mourns the passing of its spiritual father, a man whose contribution to the life of this country and its people is beyond measure. His ministry was a remarkable embodiment of love, humility, patience and service. Ilia II was and remains a symbol of national unity. His death will remain an unhealed wound for Georgia and for his spiritual children for a very long time to come,” Kakha Kaladze has said.

The Mayor went on to pay tribute to the Patriarch’s pivotal role in the restoration and strengthening of the Georgian Orthodox Church following decades of Soviet suppression.

“His Holiness and Beatitude Ilia II succeeded, step by step, in restoring and reinvigorating a Georgian Orthodox Church that had been severely weakened in the wake of the Bolshevik era, and in raising the spiritual life of the nation. Under his leadership, the Patriarchate of Georgia was not merely a centre of faith, but a vital force in shaping national consciousness and advancing Georgian culture,” the Tbilisi Mayor concluded.