Georgia's ambassador on expectations for papal visit
(Vatican Radio) Pope
Francis takes off for the Georgian capital Tbilisi on Friday for a two-day
visit to the majority Orthodox republic.
As well as meeting with
religious and civil authorities in Tbilisi, the Pope will travel to the nearby
ancient city of Mtskheta, founded in the 5th century BC and famed as one of
UNESCO’s World Heritage Sites. The former capital contains many important
monuments of early Christian architecture for the Caucuses region, including
the 11th century Svetitskhoveli Patriarchal Cathedral.
The visit comes 17 years
after Pope John Paul II made a landmark trip to the republic, struggling to
rebuild as an independent nation following 70 years of Soviet domination.
Dr Tamara Grdzelidze is an
Orthodox theologian, now serving as Georgia’s ambassador to the Holy See. Ahead
of the papal visit, she sat down with Philippa Hitchen to talk about
expectations for the trip and about the historical difficulties between the
Catholic and Orthodox Churches in her country…
The ambassador begins by
saying that Pope Francis “brings joy to every place he goes so I hope he’ll do
this in Georgia as well!” She hopes he will speak to the hearts of Georgians to
help them understand the “wisdom and spiritual joy he carries with him”. At the
same time, she underlines the significance for the Pope to visit one of the
oldest Christian countries in the world.
Speaking of the origins of
the Church in the 4th century by a woman known as Nino, she said “It’s a very
special start of Christian life in Georgia”. She explains that Nino was a young
woman from Cappadocia, who first converted the queen and the king, enabling
Christianity to became the official religion of the state.
“Difficult” is the way the
ambassador describes the relationship between Orthodox and Catholics in her
country, in large part because of the legacy of Soviet culture which still
hangs over the nation a quarter of a century after independence. At that time,
she says, the Orthodox Church suddenly became independent and has been trying
to act as “a national symbol” which puts the Catholic Church “in a difficult
position”. On the other hand, she insists, there are many examples of good
relationships and good cooperation between the two Churches.
Asked about the ecumenical
expectations of this visit, the ambassador notes the way in which Pope Francis
“tries to bring on board Christians from all traditions” as he has done through
his “renewing of dialogue with the world” on the issue of environmental
protection. She points to the many efforts he has made over the past year to
reach out to Orthodox leaders, from his meeting with Patriarch Kirill in Cuba,
to his visit to Lesbos with Patriarch Bartholomew and the Archbishop of Athens.
“He’s trying very much to have good personal relationships with Orthodox
leaders” she says, some of whom find it “problematic to talk about doctrinal
unity”.
Georgia’s Patriarch Ilia II,
the ambassador notes, has enormous influence over people and is “an enormously
credible leader” who has led the Church since 1977. She notes how he has
“literally renewed the Church life”, she says, in particular pointing to the
new flourishing of monastic life, and religious publications which are “all
accredited to his leadership”.
Speaking of Church-State
relations in Georgia, Ambassador Grdzelidze says “constitutionally the Church
is separate from the State”, yet the Constitution also recognizes the special
role of the Orthodox Church in the nation’s history. She also mentions the
trend of giving compensation to the Church for the deprivations its members
suffered during the communist era.
Không có nhận xét nào:
Đăng nhận xét