Bartholomew I is the 270th and current Archbishop of Constantinople and Ecumenical Patriarch, since 2 November 1991. In accordance with his title, he is regarded as the primus inter pares in the Eastern Orthodox Church, and as the spiritual leader of 300 million Orthodox Christians worldwide.
Freedom of religions in Georgia is provided for by the country's constitution, laws, and policies. In practice, the Georgian government generally respects religious freedom; however, the Georgian Orthodox Church enjoys a privileged status in terms of legal and tax matters, involvement in public schools, and property disputes. There have been efforts by private citizens, local government officials, and local Georgian Orthodox Church leaders to harass and persecute members of minority religious groups and interfere with their worship activities; despite calls for tolerance and respect for pluralism by government leaders, the Georgian central government has not been successful in preventing such incidents.
The highest-ranking bishops in Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy, the Catholic Church, and the Church of the East are termed patriarchs.
The term exarch comes from the Ancient Greek ἔξαρχος, exarchos, and designates holders of various historical offices, some of them being political or military and others being ecclesiastical.
The Georgian Apostolic Autocephalous Orthodox Church is an autocephalous Eastern Orthodox Church in full communion with the other churches of Eastern Orthodoxy. It is Georgia's dominant religious institution, and a majority of Georgian people are members. The Georgian Orthodox Church is one of the oldest churches in the world. It asserts apostolic foundation, and its historical roots must be traced to the early and late Christianization of Iberia and Colchis by Saint Andrew in the 1st century of new era and by Saint Nino in the 4th century AD, respectively.
Ilia II, also transliterated as Ilya or Elijah, is the current Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia and the spiritual leader of the Georgian Orthodox Church. He is officially styled as Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia, the Archbishop of Mtskheta-Tbilisi and Metropolitan Bishop of Bichvinta and Tskhum-Abkhazia, His Holiness and Beatitude Ilia II.
His Eminence is a style of reference for high nobility, still in use in various religious contexts.
Patriarch Theophilos III of Jerusalem is the current Patriarch of the Orthodox Church of Jerusalem. He is styled "Patriarch of the Holy City of Jerusalem and all Palestine and Israel."
Athanasius I was the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople for two terms, from 1289 to 1293 and 1303 to 1309. He was born in Adrianople and died in Constantinople. Chosen by the emperor Andronicus II Palaeologus as patriarch, he opposed the reunion of the Greek and Roman Churches and introduced an ecclesiastic reform that evoked opposition within the clergy. He resigned in 1293 and was restored in 1303 with popular support. The pro-Union clerical faction forced him into retirement in early 1310.
The koukoulion is a traditional headdress worn by monks of the highest degree in Eastern Christianity.
Irinej is the 45th Patriarch of the Serbian Orthodox Church, the spiritual leader of Eastern Orthodox Serbs, since 22 January 2010. His full title is His Holiness the Archbishop of Peć, Metropolitan of Belgrade and Karlovci, and Serbian Patriarch Irinej. He served as the Bishop of Niš between 1975 and 2010.
Joachim I, was Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople from 1498 to 1502 and for a short time in 1504.
Secularism and irreligion in Georgia was most popular in the 20th century when the country was part of the Soviet Union. In the 21st century, secular and non-religious currents have seen a precipitous decline due to the rising popularity of the Georgian Orthodox Church and the fact that religious faith in general “has become fashionable” in Georgian society.
Michael IV or Michael Mirianisdze was Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia, from 1178 to 1184, Mtsignobartukhutses-Chkondideli (chancellor) since 1184. Michael held his high offices to the end of his life.
Theodore II (Tevdore) was Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia, from 1187 to 1204. During a revolt of treasurer Qutlu Arslan and Tamar's disgraced husband, George the Rus, around 1191, Theodore remained loyal to the Queen. The chronicler of Tamar describes how Tamar and Catholicos-Patriarch accompanied Georgian army, as far as the cave-monastery at Vardzia, and stayed there to pray for their victory before an icon of the Holy Theotokos as the army marched toward Basiani. His tenure is marked by enlargement of several monasteries, such as Shio-Mgvie and Gelati.
George of Jerusalem was the Patriarch of Jerusalem from 797 until his death. Little is known about his activities while he was patriarch. At the time, the Church of Jerusalem was under the Abbasid Caliphate.
