Church Suspends Outspoken Cleric Ilia Toloraia Until He ‘Demonstrates Sincere Repentance’
The Church barred Archimandrite Ilia Toloraia, a cleric known for his outspoken criticism of both the ruling Georgian Dream party and senior clergy of the Georgian Orthodox Church, from performing clerical duties until he “demonstrates sincere repentance.”
The order, dated November 5 and signed by Georgian Orthodox Church Patriarch Ilia II, was based on a submission by the diocesan commission, and comes a week after Archimandrite Dorote Kurashvili, another ruling party-critical cleric, was demoted from his head priest role through a similar order.
“The cleric of the Holy Trinity Patriarchal Monastery, Archimandrite Ilia (Toloraia), is to be prohibited from performing priestly duties for verbally insulting a bishop and for making defamatory statements against the Church hierarchy in general, based on the submission of the diocesan commission, until he demonstrates sincere repentance,” reads Order No. 95.
Toloraia criticized Metropolitan Shio Mujiri, the Patriarch’s locum tenens, on a day when the diocesan commission, composed of high-ranking clergy, including Mujiri, made the decision against Archimandrite Dorote. Toloraia, who accompanied Kurashvili, accused the Metropolitan of serving Russian interests, drawing parallels to the exarchs – clerical rulers appointed by the Russian Orthodox Church under Tsarist rule in Georgia after revoking the autocephaly of the Georgian Orthodox Church.
“Today, Bishop Shio is repeating history; he appears to be one of the first exarchs in Georgia appointed by Russia, tasked directly by Russia to implement Russian politics within the Church,” Toloraia said on October 29.
Toloraia was later summoned in the Patriarchate, which he suggested was in response to those comments. After the meeting with the high-ranking clerics, he said Metropolitan Shio accused him of “insulting the Church and the Patriarch” through his public statements and demanded that he repent. According to Toloraia, the meeting concluded with an ultimatum, “Repent, or we will take measures.” The archimandrite also alleged that Patriarchate spokesperson Andria Jagmaidze physically pushed him toward the door at the end of the meeting.
Toloraia, like Kurashvili, has publicly supported ongoing pro-European demonstrations in Tbilisi and has voiced solidarity with protesters who have been targeted by Georgian Dream’s recent repressive measures.
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