Archbishop Jacob leaves position as Patriarch’s assistant after meeting with Ilia II
By Nika Gamtsemlidze
Tuesday, October 29
After previous controversial statements, archbishop Jacob has quit the position of Patriarch Ilia II’s assistant and the chief of the Economic and Financial Council of the Patriarchate. As he told TV Pirveli a few days ago, because of his influence in the Patriarchate, several leaders of the government, including the current prime minister of the country, Giorgi Gakharia, Interior Minister Vakhtang Gomelauri, and former PM Giorgi Kvirikashvili, asked him to help them “make Ilia II resign.”
Jacob visited Patriarchate yesterday to have a meeting with Ilia II, after which he announced his resignation.
“I came specifically to see His Holiness and talk about my decision. I decided to step down from my position, this was my own decision. However, I’m staying in the diocese,” noted Jacob. Also, he apologized for the way he was talking but noted that his position remains unchanged.
The Patriarchate has also issued a decree of the Catholicos-Patriarch Ilia II, which reads that, on the personal request of Archbishop Jacob, he has been removed from the position of Patriarch Ilia II’s assistant and the chief of the Economic and Financial Council of the Patriarchate.
Archil Khachidze, a spokesman for the Patriarchate's public relations office, said the Synod will discuss how proportionate the Archbishop Jacob's decision to resign was.
Former Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili says he has never gone against the Patriarch.
Independent MP Eka Beselia says former Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili had a "close and warm" relationship with the church and the Patriarchate. She said the attitude was bilateral.
The lawmaker says the issue is dangerous because it is about political leaders of the highest position. She said that some formats should be selected to discuss the issue.
Mamuka Mdinaradze, a lawmaker from the ruling party, thinks it would be irresponsible for him to be discussed as Archbishop Jacob's decision. He said, “we should not forget that we live in a secular state.”
"The main meaning of a secular state is that we must not interfere in each other's affairs in any way," noted Mdinaradze.
As the lawyer of the Patriarchate, Edisher Karchava, said, “Jacob has done a lot for both the Georgian Patriarchate and this government, so it is my personal opinion that his demonization and proclamation as the enemy will be wrong.”
According to Karchava, Archbishop Jacob had a particularly good attitude with the current government. He suggests that the process may have been provoked by some forces. He said that he was shocked by Jacob's statements.
Archbishop Jacob has accused Gakharia of his connections with other officials several times, even before his appointment as the Prime Minister. Jacob has called Gakharia “the man of Russia” and also criticized him for his initiated marijuana cultivation project, saying he should be ashamed of speaking about the legalization of medical cannabis. Archbishop Jacob said that the senior officials of the government were holding meetings with other church representatives.
