Vatican delegation to attend funeral of Patriarch Ilia II
The Holy See will send a group of high-ranking representatives to Tbilisi, headed by Cardinal Kurt Koch, the chief curator of ecumenical dialogue.
The Vatican has officially confirmed its participation in the funeral ceremonies dedicated to the burial of the reposed Catholicos-Patriarch Ilia II of All Georgia. As reported by the Georgian media resource, the official delegation of the Holy See will be headed by Cardinal Kurt Koch, Prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity.
The mission arriving in Tbilisi also includes significant figures from Vatican diplomacy and clergy: Msgr. Jaromir Ladrapa, official representative of the Dicastery, Apostolic Nuncio to Georgia Archbishop Ante Jozic, and Monsignor Alexander Rachinja, advisor to the papal legate. Additionally, the farewell ceremony will be attended by Bishop Giuseppe Pasotto, Apostolic Administrator for Latin Catholics of the Caucasus, and Msgr. Kevork Noradounguian, Ordinary for Armenian Catholics in Eastern Europe.
For Cardinal Kurt Koch, this visit will continue many years of contacts with Georgia. He previously visited the country in 2014 and 2016, where he discussed with the state agency for religious affairs topics of financing religious organizations and the construction of a Catholic church in Rustavi. In 2022, the Cardinal personally welcomed the choir of the Tbilisi Cathedral of the Holy Trinity during their performance in the Sistine Chapel.
In his public speeches, the Prefect of the Dicastery consistently emphasized the "special warmth" of the reposed Primate of the Georgian Church in relations with Rome. Koch recalled how Patriarch Ilia II personally met Pope Francis at the airport and gave his blessing. At the same time, the Vatican hierarch noted that such openness is not characteristic of everyone.
Meanwhile, the Vatican does not hide the existence of sharp corners in inter-church relations. In particular, Cardinal Koch previously called the practice of "forced rebaptism" of Catholics in Georgia an "extremely serious issue," insisting on the need to continue discussion on this problem.
Earlier, the UOC wrote that the Apostolic Nuncio to Ukraine explained why the Vatican does not call Russia an aggressor.
