![Catholic Church in Georgia](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/09/Catholic_Church_in_Georgia.svg)
The Catholic Church in Georgia, since the 11th-century
East–West Schism, has been composed mainly of
Latin Church
, native_name_lang = la
, image = San Giovanni in Laterano - Rome.jpg
, imagewidth = 250px
, alt = Façade of the Archbasilica of St. John in Lateran
, caption = Archbasilica of Saint Joh ...
Catholics; a very large community of the
Armenian Catholic Church
, native_name_lang = hy
, image = St Elie - St Gregory Armenian Catholic Cathedral.jpg
, imagewidth = 260px
, alt =
, caption = Cathedral of Saint Elias and Saint Gregory the Illuminat ...
has existed in Georgia since the 18th century.
A
Georgian Greek Catholic Church, although small, has existed for a number of centuries. It has never constituted an autonomous ("sui iuris")
Church
Church may refer to:
Religion
* Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities
* Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination
* Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship
* C ...
, as defined by Canon 27 of the
''Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches'', which have a hierarchy of their own and are recognized as autonomous by the supreme authority of the Church. Outside Georgia, a small parish has long existed in
Istanbul
Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...
, centered on
Our Lady of Lourdes Church, Istanbul
The Church of Our Lady of Lourdes ( tr, Notre Dame de Lourdes Gürcü Katolik Kilisesi; ka, სტამბოლის ქართველთა სავანე) is a historic parish of the Georgian Greek Catholic Church in the district of ...
, founded in 1861.
This was never established as a recognized
particular church
In metaphysics, particulars or individuals are usually contrasted with universals. Universals concern features that can be exemplified by various different particulars. Particulars are often seen as concrete, spatiotemporal entities as opposed to a ...
of any level (exarchate, ordinariate, etc.), within the communion of Catholic Churches, and accordingly has never appeared in the list of
Eastern Catholic Churches
The Eastern Catholic Churches or Oriental Catholic Churches, also called the Eastern-Rite Catholic Churches, Eastern Rite Catholicism, or simply the Eastern Churches, are 23 Eastern Christian autonomous (''sui iuris'') particular churches of th ...
published in the ''
Annuario Pontificio
The ''Annuario Pontificio'' (Italian for ''Pontifical Yearbook'') is the annual directory of the Holy See of the Catholic Church. It lists the popes in chronological order and all officials of the Holy See's departments. It also provides names ...
''.
History
Christianity in Georgia began in earnest with the
evangelization
In Christianity, evangelism (or witnessing) is the act of preaching the gospel with the intention of sharing the message and teachings of Jesus Christ.
Christians who specialize in evangelism are often known as evangelists, whether they are i ...
by
Saint Nino
Saint Nino ( ka, წმინდა ნინო, tr; hy, Սուրբ Նունե, Surb Nune; el, Αγία Νίνα, Agía Nína; sometimes ''St. Nune'' or ''St. Ninny'') ''Equal to the Apostles and the Enlightener of Georgia'' (c. 296 – c. 33 ...
in the 4th century.
Georgian Christianity then developed in the Byzantine Orthodox tradition, although contact with Rome did occur. The
East–West Schism did not immediately sever communion between Georgia and the
Holy See
The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of Rome ...
, although the break was recognized by the mid-
13th century.
Around this time, Catholic missionaries became active in Georgia, setting up small Latin communities. A Latin-Rite Diocese was established at
Tbilisi
Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the Capital city, capital and the List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia (country), Georgia, lying on the ...
in 1329, but this was allowed to lapse after the appointment of the fourteenth and last of its line of bishops in 1507, owing to few numbers of Catholics.
In 1626, the
Theatine
The Theatines officially named the Congregation of Clerics Regular ( la, Ordo Clericorum Regularium), abreviated CR, is a Catholic order of clerics regular of Pontifical Right for men founded by Archbishop Gian Pietro Carafa in Sept. 14, 1524. I ...
and
Capuchin orders established new missions in Georgia. In the following centuries a community of Latin Catholics began to form, members of this community commonly being referred to as "French", which was the dominant nationality of the missionaries. Both orders were expelled by
Tsar Nicholas I
, house = Romanov-Holstein-Gottorp
, father = Paul I of Russia
, mother = Maria Feodorovna (Sophie Dorothea of Württemberg)
, birth_date =
, birth_place = Gatchina Palace, Gatchina, Russian Empire
, death_date = ...
in 1845.
However, an agreement between
Pope Pius IX and
Tsar
Tsar ( or ), also spelled ''czar'', ''tzar'', or ''csar'', is a title used by East and South Slavic monarchs. The term is derived from the Latin word ''caesar'', which was intended to mean "emperor" in the European medieval sense of the ter ...
Nicholas I in 1848 permitted the establishment of the Latin-Rite
Diocese of Tiraspol. This was based in Russia, but all Transcaucasian Catholics, including ethnic Georgians, were aggregated to it. The Russian part of that diocese is now called
Saint Clement in Saratov.
Towards the end of the 19th century, some Georgian Catholics wished to use the Byzantine rite in
Old Georgian
Old Georgian (ႤႬႠჂ ႵႠႰႧႭჃႪႨ, ''enay kartuli'') was a literary language of the Georgian monarchies attested from the 5th century. The language remains in use as the liturgical language of the Georgian Orthodox Church and for ...
, but were thwarted by the outlawing of Byzantine "
Uniate
The Eastern Catholic Churches or Oriental Catholic Churches, also called the Eastern-Rite Catholic Churches, Eastern Rite Catholicism, or simply the Eastern Churches, are 23 Eastern Christian autonomous (''sui iuris'') particular churches of t ...
" groups. Accordingly, since the tsars forbade their Catholic subjects to use the
Byzantine Rite, and the Holy See did not promote its use among the Georgians, some of them, clergy as well as laity, adopted the
Armenian Rite
The Armenian Rite () is an independent liturgy used by both the Armenian Apostolic and Armenian Catholic Churches.
Liturgy
The liturgy is patterned after the directives of Saint Gregory the Illuminator, first official head and patron sain ...
. There existed at that time the Armenian Catholic Diocese of
Artvin
Artvin ( Laz and ; hy, Արտուին, translit=Artuin) is a city in northeastern Turkey about inland from the Black Sea.
It is located on a hill overlooking the Çoruh River near the Deriner Dam. It is a former bishopric and (vacant) Armeni ...
, which had been set up in Russian Transcaucasia in 1850. It is now a merely titular see, listed as such in the ''
Annuario Pontificio
The ''Annuario Pontificio'' (Italian for ''Pontifical Yearbook'') is the annual directory of the Holy See of the Catholic Church. It lists the popes in chronological order and all officials of the Holy See's departments. It also provides names ...
''.
At
Istanbul
Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...
in 1861, ethnic Georgian and former
Mekhitarist
, image =
, image_size =
, caption =
, abbreviation = C.A.M.
, nickname = Mechitarists
, established =
, founder = Abbot Mekhitar of Sebaste, C.A.M.
, foundin ...
priest Fr.
Peter Kharischirashvili
Peter Kharischirashvili (in Georgian: პეტრე ხარისჭირაშვილი / ხარისჭარაშვილი, born in 1804 or 1805 in Akhaltsikhe, Tiflis Governorate, Russian Empire – 7 October 1890 in Constant ...
founded the first two
religious congregation
A religious congregation is a type of religious institute in the Catholic Church. They are legally distinguished from religious orders – the other major type of religious institute – in that members take simple vows, whereas members of religi ...
s of the
Georgian Greek Catholic Church; the
Servites of the Immaculate Conception, one for men and the other for women. They served Georgian Catholics living in the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
and elsewhere in the
Georgian diaspora
The Georgian diaspora refers to both historical and present emigration from Georgia. The countries with the largest Georgian communities outside Georgia are Turkey and Russia.
Geographic distribution
{, class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable" ...
, like at
Montaubon,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
. Both congregations survived until the late 1950s. The building that housed the male congregation of the Servites, Fery-Quoa, still stands in
Istanbul
Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...
, but is now in private ownership. Their clergy gave Georgian Catholics in Constantinople the possibility to worship in the
Byzantine Rite in
Old Georgian
Old Georgian (ႤႬႠჂ ႵႠႰႧႭჃႪႨ, ''enay kartuli'') was a literary language of the Georgian monarchies attested from the 5th century. The language remains in use as the liturgical language of the Georgian Orthodox Church and for ...
, but, as is common for Eastern Catholics without a Hierarchy of their own, they were under the authority of the local Latin Catholic bishop.
Georgian nationalist,
Roman Catholic priest
The priesthood is the office of the ministers of religion, who have been commissioned ("ordained") with the Holy orders of the Catholic Church. Technically, bishops are a priestly order as well; however, in layman's terms ''priest'' refers only ...
, and political emigre Fr.
Michel Tamarati
Michel Tamarati, born Mikhail Tamarashvili ( ka, მიხეილ თამარაშვილი), (September 1858 – September 16, 1911) was a Georgian Roman Catholic priest and historian, known for his oft-cited French-language history of ...
was the first to study the history of Catholicism in Georgia, eventually producing the oft-cited ''L'Eglise géorgienne des origines jusqu' à nos jours'' in French in 1911.
[Rapp, Stephen H. (2010), "Georgian Christianity"]
p. 151
in ''The Blackwell Companion to Eastern Christianity'' (Parry, K., ed.). Blackwell Publishing Ltd, .
![Catholic cathedral in Tbilisi (President of Poland visit)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/14/Catholic_cathedral_in_Tbilisi_%28President_of_Poland_visit%29.jpg)
Only after the granting of religious freedom during the
Russian Revolution of 1905
The Russian Revolution of 1905,. also known as the First Russian Revolution,. occurred on 22 January 1905, and was a wave of mass political and social unrest that spread through vast areas of the Russian Empire. The mass unrest was directed again ...
did some Georgian Catholics resume the Byzantine Rite, without reaching the stage of having a separate diocese (particular Church) established for them.
At the outbreak of the
First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, Georgian Catholics were some 50,000. About 40,000 of these were of Roman Rite, the others were mainly Armenian Catholics. Canonically, they depended on the Roman Catholic Diocese of Tiraspol, which had its headquarters at
Saratov
Saratov (, ; rus, Сара́тов, a=Ru-Saratov.ogg, p=sɐˈratəf) is the largest city and administrative center of Saratov Oblast, Russia, and a major port on the Volga River upstream (north) of Volgograd. Saratov had a population of 901,36 ...
on the
Volga River
The Volga (; russian: Во́лга, a=Ru-Волга.ogg, p=ˈvoɫɡə) is the longest river in Europe. Situated in Russia, it flows through Central Russia to Southern Russia and into the Caspian Sea. The Volga has a length of , and a catchme ...
.
In the brief period of
Georgian independence between 1918 and 1921, some influential Orthodox Georgians expressed interest in reunification with the
Holy See
The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of Rome ...
, and an envoy was sent from the Vatican in 1919 to examine the situation. As a result of the onset of the
civil war
A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country).
The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
and the
Soviet invasion, this came to nothing.
In 1920, it was estimated that of 40,000 Catholics in Georgia, 32,000 were Latins and the remainder of the Armenian rite.
According to Father Christopher Zugger, nine Servite missionaries from Constantinople, headed by
Exarch Shio Batmanishvili
Shio Batmanishvili (in Georgian: შიო ბათმანიშვილი, born in 1885 in Akhaltsikhe, Tiflis Governorate, Russian Empire – November 1, 1937, Sandarmokh, Karelia, Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic) was a Geo ...
, came to the newly independent
Democratic Republic of Georgia
The Democratic Republic of Georgia (DRG; ka, საქართველოს დემოკრატიული რესპუბლიკა ') was the first modern establishment of a republic of Georgia, which existed from May 1918 to F ...
to permanently establish Catholicism of the
Byzantine Rite in
Old Georgian
Old Georgian (ႤႬႠჂ ႵႠႰႧႭჃႪႨ, ''enay kartuli'') was a literary language of the Georgian monarchies attested from the 5th century. The language remains in use as the liturgical language of the Georgian Orthodox Church and for ...
there, and by 1929 their faithful had grown to 8,000. Tragically, their mission came to an end with the arrests of Exarch Shio and his priests by the
Soviet secret police
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
in 1928, their imprisonment in the
Gulag
The Gulag, an acronym for , , "chief administration of the camps". The original name given to the system of camps controlled by the GPU was the Main Administration of Corrective Labor Camps (, )., name=, group= was the government agency in ...
at
Solovki prison camp, and their subsequent murder by
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secretar ...
's
NKVD
The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs (russian: Наро́дный комиссариа́т вну́тренних дел, Naródnyy komissariát vnútrennikh del, ), abbreviated NKVD ( ), was the interior ministry of the Soviet Union.
...
at
Sandarmokh
Sandarmokh (russian: Сандармох; krl, Sandarmoh) is a forest massif from Medvezhyegorsk in the Republic of Karelia where possibly thousands of victims of Stalin's Great Terror were executed. More than 58 nationalities were shot and bur ...
in 1937.
Organisation
![St](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e9/St._Peter_%26_Paul_cathedral%2C_Tbilisi_%28B%29.jpg)
After the collapse of the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
, a
Latin Rite
Latin liturgical rites, or Western liturgical rites, are Catholic rites of public worship employed by the Latin Church, the largest particular church '' sui iuris'' of the Catholic Church, that originated in Europe where the Latin language once ...
apostolic administration
An Apostolic administration in the Catholic Church is administrated by a prelate appointed by the pope to serve as the ordinary for a specific area. Either the area is not yet a diocese (a stable 'pre-diocesan', usually missionary apostolic admi ...
(pre-diocesan jurisdiction) of the
Caucasus
The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, mainly comprising Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and parts of Southern Russia. The Caucasus Mountains, including the Greater Caucasus range, have historically ...
was established on 30 December 1993, with headquarters in the Georgian capital
Tbilisi
Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the Capital city, capital and the List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia (country), Georgia, lying on the ...
, with a territory including Georgia,
Armenia
Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...
and, until 2001,
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of th ...
. Since 1996 this has been headed by bishop
Giuseppe Pasotto, who arrived in Tbilisi in 1993 and has lived in Georgia ever since. In an interview with
Aid to the Church in Need
In international relations, aid (also known as international aid, overseas aid, foreign aid, economic aid or foreign assistance) is – from the perspective of governments – a voluntary transfer of resources from one country to another.
Ai ...
, the bishop described the situation of the Catholic Church on his arrival, soon after the country had gained independence. "The only thing that was left of the Catholic Church was one open place of worship (the Church of St. Peter and St. Paul in Tbilisi). The communities that were scattered across rural areas had all been abandoned. The first thing we did was re-establish contact and then find additional priests from other countries and local churches to come and help us. And so we gradually began to rebuild the most important structures. It seems to me that the rosary saved the Catholic faith not only in Georgia, but in all Communist countries. The people came together in the houses to pray and the grandmothers were the ones who took responsibility."
In the same interview, the bishop ranked ecumenical work as the main priority for the Church at present. "This is our first task and it is a very difficult one. Due to the legacy of its past, the
Orthodox Church
Orthodox Church may refer to:
* Eastern Orthodox Church
* Oriental Orthodox Churches
* Orthodox Presbyterian Church
* Orthodox Presbyterian Church of New Zealand
* State church of the Roman Empire
* True Orthodox church
See also
* Orthodox (di ...
still has a hard time being open to this. The Catholics are well aware that they are a minority and often face discrimination and unfair treatment. You just need to remember the six churches that were confiscated and never given back, or the prohibition of interfaith marriages. The ecumenical path requires a great deal of patience and the constant search for new and potential opportunities for establishing relationships that could develop into bridges. Our university, where most of the students are non-Catholics, plays an important role in this."
Georgians of
Armenian Rite
The Armenian Rite () is an independent liturgy used by both the Armenian Apostolic and Armenian Catholic Churches.
Liturgy
The liturgy is patterned after the directives of Saint Gregory the Illuminator, first official head and patron sain ...
are in the care of the
Ordinariate for
Armenian Catholic
Armenian may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent
** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...
s in
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is a subregion of the Europe, European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic connotations. The vast majority of the region is covered by Russ ...
, which was established on 13 July 1991, covering a vast area including
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
and
Ukraine
Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...
, much vaster than Georgia, which has some 400,000 faithful in all (''
Annuario Pontificio
The ''Annuario Pontificio'' (Italian for ''Pontifical Yearbook'') is the annual directory of the Holy See of the Catholic Church. It lists the popes in chronological order and all officials of the Holy See's departments. It also provides names ...
'' 2012).
Georgian Catholics of the Byzantine rite are said to have numbered 7,000 in 2005.
Theatine
The Theatines officially named the Congregation of Clerics Regular ( la, Ordo Clericorum Regularium), abreviated CR, is a Catholic order of clerics regular of Pontifical Right for men founded by Archbishop Gian Pietro Carafa in Sept. 14, 1524. I ...
and
Capuchin missionaries worked for reunion in Georgia, but under Imperial Russia in 1845, Catholics were not allowed to use the Byzantine Rite. Many Catholics adopted the
Armenian Rite
The Armenian Rite () is an independent liturgy used by both the Armenian Apostolic and Armenian Catholic Churches.
Liturgy
The liturgy is patterned after the directives of Saint Gregory the Illuminator, first official head and patron sain ...
until the institution of religious liberty in 1905, which allowed them to return to the Byzantine Rite. In 1937, the Georgian Catholic
exarch,
Shio Batmanishvili
Shio Batmanishvili (in Georgian: შიო ბათმანიშვილი, born in 1885 in Akhaltsikhe, Tiflis Governorate, Russian Empire – November 1, 1937, Sandarmokh, Karelia, Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic) was a Geo ...
(or Batmalishviii), was executed by the
Soviet
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nation ...
s.
Demographics and major churches
There are approximately 80,000 Catholics in
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
– around 2% of the total population. They are mostly found either in
Tbilisi
Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the Capital city, capital and the List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia (country), Georgia, lying on the ...
or in the southern region of the country, where exclusively Catholic villages exist. There are three Catholic churches in Tbilisi; the Cathedral of
Our Lady in the old town, the parish church of
St Peter and
St Paul, and Mar Shimon Bar Sabbae Assyrian Chaldean Catholic Church in Saburtalo. A
Neocatechumenal Way
The Neocatechumenal Way, also known as the Neocatechumenate, or NCW (colloquially, The Way or Neo-Cats) is an association of the Christian faithful within the Catholic Church. It was formed in Madrid in 1964 by Kiko Argüello and Carmen Hern ...
Mission involving priests,
families in mission and lay persons has been present in Sts Peter and Paul church since 1991, helping and leading the parish.
The Catholics in Tbilisi are mostly
Georgians
The Georgians, or Kartvelians (; ka, ქართველები, tr, ), are a nation and indigenous Caucasian ethnic group native to Georgia and the South Caucasus. Georgian diaspora communities are also present throughout Russia, Turkey, G ...
and
Armenians
Armenians ( hy, հայեր, ''hayer'' ) are an ethnic group native to the Armenian highlands of Western Asia. Armenians constitute the main population of Armenia and the ''de facto'' independent Artsakh. There is a wide-ranging diaspora ...
, as well as a small
Assyrian
Assyrian may refer to:
* Assyrian people, the indigenous ethnic group of Mesopotamia.
* Assyria, a major Mesopotamian kingdom and empire.
** Early Assyrian Period
** Old Assyrian Period
** Middle Assyrian Empire
** Neo-Assyrian Empire
* Assyrian ...
community of the
Chaldean Rite.
This church also provides mass in English, catering for the growing Catholic expatriate population of
Americans
Americans are the Citizenship of the United States, citizens and United States nationality law, nationals of the United States, United States of America.; ; Although direct citizens and nationals make up the majority of Americans, many Multi ...
,
Europeans,
Indians and
Maltese. There are only about 1000 practicing Catholics in Tbilisi. Many other Catholic churches were confiscated by the Georgian Orthodox Church after the fall of communism when the state gave all church property back to the Georgian Orthodox church. Recently, a new seminary has been completed on the outskirts of
Tbilisi
Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the Capital city, capital and the List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia (country), Georgia, lying on the ...
A Catholic church is also present in
Sukhumi
Sukhumi (russian: Суху́м(и), ) or Sokhumi ( ka, სოხუმი, ), also known by its Abkhaz name Aqwa ( ab, Аҟәа, ''Aqwa''), is a city in a wide bay on the Black Sea's eastern coast. It is both the capital and largest city of ...
, in
Abkhazia
Abkhazia, ka, აფხაზეთი, tr, , xmf, აბჟუა, abzhua, or ( or ), officially the Republic of Abkhazia, is a partially recognised state in the South Caucasus, recognised by most countries as part of Georgia, which vi ...
. Other Catholic Churches are found in Vale,
Gori and in
Batumi
Batumi (; ka, ბათუმი ) is the second largest city of Georgia and the capital of the Autonomous Republic of Adjara, located on the coast of the Black Sea in Georgia's southwest. It is situated in a subtropical zone at the foot of th ...
.
See also
*
List of Catholic dioceses in Georgia
*
Notre-Dame-de-Lourdes Georgian Catholic church in Bomonti,
Şişli
Şişli () is one of the 39 districts of Istanbul, Turkey. Located on the European side of the city, it is bordered by Beşiktaş to the east, Sarıyer to the north, Eyüp and Kağıthane to the west, and Beyoğlu to the south. In 2009, Şiş ...
, Istanbul
References
Bibliography
*
External links
Official site for Catholics in Georgia
{{Asia topic, Christianity in
Eastern Catholic Churches
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...