Patriarch Gives Recommendations to Church Leaders amid Imposed Curfew

Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia Ilia II has given certain recommendations to church leaders.

Due to the imposed curfew in the country, the Patriarch calls on the leaders of the churches to start prayers at 4:00 pm and close the churches at 8:00 pm every day starting from tomorrow.

The above information was announced by Andria Jagmaidze, Head of the Public Relations Department of the Georgian Patriarchate.

“There are three recommendations for you: to take the imposed curfew into consideration and start prayers at 4:00 pm and close the churches at 8:00 pm every day starting from tomorrow. We would like to remind you to mark out places where parishioners should stand during the prayers in the yards of the churches and the distance between these places should be 1.5 m; please clean the icons and shrines frequently (with alcohol and rose water) every day,” Jagmaidze said.  

As for the question about how Easter services will be conducted throughout Georgia, he noted that it is early to make statements on this issue at this stage. 

"We would like to tell all clergymen: let’s not make early statements on how we will conduct Easter services, as things change continually. We are in constant contact with the authorities and the healthcare organization and are trying to respond adequately to all. Today, we must take care of each other's health," he noted. 

By Ana Dumbadze