Patriarch Ilia II of Georgia, the longtime head of the Georgian Orthodox Church and one of the country’s most influential figures, has died at the age of 93.
TBILISI, GEORGIA — Patriarch Ilia II of Georgia, the longtime head of the Georgian Orthodox Church and one of the country’s most influential figures, has died. He was 93 years old.
Ilya II died late Tuesday night after being admitted to hospital in critical condition due to internal bleeding.
“He was an erudite man; this is a tremendous loss for the entire Orthodox Church,” said Shio Mujiri, who temporarily assumed leadership of the church until the election of a new patriarch.
Ilia II led the church for nearly five decades. He took on leadership roles in 1977, when Georgia was part of the Soviet Union and religious practices were banned, and he remained a prominent spiritual and public figure even after Georgia gained independence.
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