The state will not make any changes to the Constitution of Georgia concerning the strengthening of the status of the Orthodox Church without the consent of the Patriarchate, said Archpriest Andria Jagmaidze, head of the Public Relations Service of the Patriarchate of Georgia, after a meeting of the high priests.
The topic of discussion at the meeting of the high priests on Thursday, August 29, was the proposal of the ruling party to further strengthen the role of the Georgian Church by the Constitution of Georgia. The almost four-hour consultation was attended by lawyers of the Patriarchate and constitutionalists together with high-ranking clergy.
"Discussions on this issue will continue, since we are talking about an amendment to the Constitution. The state has once again stated that there will be no recordings without the consent of the church," Jagmaidze told reporters.
The cleric once again stressed that on the part of the ruling Georgian Dream – Democratic Georgia party, this proposal is an act of politeness.
"Most of the high priests agree that this is acceptable," Jagmaidze added.
Currently, relations between the State and the GOC are regulated by the Constitutional Agreement of 2002, adopted under President Eduard Shevardnadze, which states that "the state and the Church confirm their readiness to cooperate, observing the principle of mutual independence, for the benefit of the country's population."
The majority of believers in Georgia are Orthodox Christians (84.9%). There are also Muslims (10.9%), adherents of the Armenian Apostolic Church (3%), Catholics (0.5%) and representatives of other faiths (0.7%).
Based on the materials of Sputnik-Georgia