Georgian Armenians visit Patriarch Ilia II
Representatives of Georgia's Armenian community led by Bishop Vazgen Mirzakhanian, Primate of the Georgian Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church, visited Thursday the Patriarchate of the Georgian Orthodox Church, and, on behalf of the devout Armenians, conveyed New Year wishes to Patriarch Ilia II of Georgia.
Van Bayburtyan, editor-in-chief of the Armenian newspaper "Vrastan" (Georgia), Alexander Utmazyan, member of the Diocesan Council, and Mikael Avagian, Assistant to the Primate of the Georgian Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church, were among the group.
The delegation was accompanied by Vahagn Afyan, First Secretary of the Armenian Embassy in Georgia.
Congratulating the Georgian Patriarch on holidays, Bishop Vazgen Mirzakhanian expressed gratitude for maintaining friendly and warm relations between the Armenian and Georgian churches. Bishop Mirzakhanian expressed his concern over the miserable condition of the churches in Tbilisi's Armenian district, specifically those of St. Nshan and St. Norashen. He asked Ilia II to involve in resolving the problem, proposing that the aforesaid churches be returned to the Armenian Diocese, or, be protected by Georgian authorities until the matter is resolved.
In his turn, the Georgian Patriarch congratulated the Armenians of Georgia, hailed their role in the country's life and urged making cultural and spiritual meetings more frequent. He also promised to help resolve the issue.
