Biserica Ortodoxă a Georgiei: influențe străine și legăturile ei cu autoritățile statale
The Georgian Orthodox Church: External Influences and Its Relations with State Authorities

Author(s): Gocha BARNOVI
Contributor(s): Ion-Marian Croitoru (Translator)
Subject(s): Christian Theology and Religion, Theology and Religion, Eastern Orthodoxy
Published by: Ideas Forum International Academic and Scientific Association
Keywords: Autocephaly; Orthodox Church of Georgia; Russification; Church– State Relations; Georgian National Identity; Byzantine Model; Soviet Influence; Religious Freedom; Political Power; European Integration
Summary/Abstract: The Orthodox Church of Georgia is one of the oldest and most enduring institutions shaping Georgian national and cultural identity. Since the adoption of Christianity in the fourth century, the Church has served as a cornerstone of statehood and social cohesion, fusing faith with the national ideal. The traditional Byzantine model of symphonia between Church and state structured their relationship for centuries within a framework of mutual legitimization and support. The annexation of Georgia by the Russian Empire in the nineteenth century disrupted this balance. Following the abolition of the Church’s autocephaly in 1811, the imperial government pursued a policy of Russification through religion, transforming the Church into an instrument of political assimilation. The subordination to Moscow, the removal of the Georgian Patriarchate, and the appointment of Russian exarchs curtailed ecclesiastical independence and inflicted deep wounds on the nation’s spiritual and cultural memory. During the Soviet era, the Church was first suppressed and later co-opted as a vehicle of state policy. In 1943, Joseph Stalin restored the Church’s autocephaly—not out of respect for religion, but as part of a broader strategy of ideological control and wartime mobilization. Throughout the Cold War, the Georgian Church, like others in the Soviet bloc, participated in international ecclesiastical dialogues under strict political supervision. After the restoration of state independence in 1991, the Orthodox Church regained its privileged position in public life. The 1995 Constitution affirmed the secular character of the state while recognizing the Church’s historical role, and the 2002 Concordat formalized its privileges, including tax exemptions and state funding. Yet these privileges have also raised concerns about equality among religious communities and the neutrality of the state. Today, as Georgia pursues European integration, the Church stands at a critical juncture: it must reconcile its spiritual mission with democratic values and political independence, ensuring that religious authority serves the moral integrity of society without yielding to external or partisan influence.

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