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With deep sorrow and in the hope of the Resurrection, the Orthodox Church in America joins the Georgian Orthodox Church in mourning the falling asleep of His Holiness Ilia II, Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia, who reposed in the Lord on March 17, 2026 at the age of 93.
Elected Catholicos-Patriarch on December 25, 1977, His Holiness shepherded the Georgian Orthodox Church through many years of change, particularly in the period leading up to the collapse of the Soviet Union and its aftermath. During his ministry, many churches and monasteries were restored or newly established, theological education in the country was revived, and the life of the Orthodox Church in Georgian society was strengthened.
His Beatitude Metropolitan Tikhon sent a letter of condolence to His Eminence Metropolitan Shio, Locum Tenens of the Patriarchal Throne, which reads:
His Eminence Metropolitan Shio
Metropolitan of Senaki and Chkhorotsku
Locum Tenens of the Patriarchal Throne of Georgia
Your Eminence, beloved brother and concelebrant in the Lord’s Mysteries,
I write to express my heartfelt condolences to Your Eminence and to the Holy Synod, clergy, monastics, and faithful of the Georgian Orthodox Church on the repose of your beloved Primate, His Holiness Patriarch Ilia II.
His Holiness’ long and remarkable tenure as Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia stands as a profound witness to faithfulness, perseverance, and pastoral love. For decades, he guided the Georgian Church through times of great trial and renewal, preserving her unity, strengthening her witness, and nurturing the spiritual life of her faithful. His ministry bore enduring fruit not only within Georgia, but throughout the Orthodox world, where he was widely recognized as a father among hierarchs and a steadfast confessor of the Orthodox faith.
Throughout his life, His Holiness exemplified the Gospel he proclaimed. His humility, wisdom, and deep love for Christ and His Church inspired generations of clergy and faithful. In his person, many encountered a living testimony to the enduring strength of the Orthodox Church and her sacred tradition.
The Orthodox Church in America joins you in mourning his passing while giving thanks to God for his life and ministry. His Holiness will be remembered with gratitude and reverence by our clergy and faithful, who have long held him in high esteem.
Please be assured of my prayers for the blessed repose of his soul. May the Lord grant rest to His faithful servant in a place of light, a place of green pasture, a place of refreshment, where there is no pain, sorrow, or sighing, but life everlasting.
May his memory be eternal!
Your brother in Christ,
+Tikhon
Archbishop of Washington
Metropolitan of All America and Canada
May His Holiness’ memory be eternal!
