The Constitutional Agreement between the Georgian state and the Apostolic Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Georgia ( ka, კონსტიტუციური შეთანხმება საქართველოს სახელმწიფოსა და საქართველოს სამოციქულო ავტოკეფალურ მართლმადიდებელ ეკლესიას შორის), informally referred to as the

Concordat A concordat is a convention between the Holy See and a sovereign state that defines the relationship between the Catholic Church and the state in matters that concern both,René Metz, ''What is Canon Law?'' (New York: Hawthorn Books, 1960 st Edi ...

, is an agreement between the Georgian Orthodox Church (GOC) and the state that defines relations between the two entities. It was signed by

President of Georgia President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Eduard Shevardnadze Eduard Ambrosis dze Shevardnadze ( ka, ედუარდ ამბროსის ძე შევარდნაძე}, romanized: ; 25 January 1928 – 7 July 2014) was a Soviet and Georgian politician and diplomat who governed Georgia fo ...

and

Patriarch of Georgia The highest-ranking bishops in Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy, the Catholic Church (above major archbishop and primate), the Hussite Church, Church of the East, and some Independent Catholic Churches are termed patriarchs (and in certain ...

Ilia II Ilia may refer to: Science and medicine *''Apatura ilia'' or lesser purple emperor, a butterfly *Ilium (bone) (plural: "ilia"), pelvic bone People * Ilia (name), numerous **Ilia II, the current Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia Places *Ilia, ...

on 14 October 2002 at

Svetitskhoveli Cathedral The Svetitskhoveli Cathedral ( ka, სვეტიცხოვლის საკათედრო ტაძარი, ''svet'icxovlis sak'atedro t'adzari''; literally the Cathedral of the Living Pillar) is an Orthodox Christian cathedral located ...

in Mtskheta, Georgia. *The concordat confirms the Georgian Orthodox Church's ownership of all churches and monasteries on the territory of Georgia, including those in ruins or non-operating. *The agreement recognizes the special role of the GOC in the history of Georgia and devolves authority over all religious matters to it. *The concordat also gives the patriarch legal immunity, grants the GOC the exclusive right to staff the military chaplaincy, exempts GOC clergymen from military service, and gives the GOC a unique consultative role in government, especially in the sphere of education. *The government of Georgia recognizes the legitimacy of the wedding ceremonies performed by the Georgian Orthodox Church, while maintaining that in legal matters government records must be used. *As a partial owner of what had been confiscated from the church under

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 ...

rule (1921–1991), the State pledges to recompense, at least partially, for the damage. Some of the concordat’s provisions, including the consultative role of the church in education, require implementing legislation yet to be adopted by parliament. Under the concordat, the Georgian Orthodox Church was the only officially recognized religious denomination in Georgia. Although other minorities such as Catholics and Muslims had freedom to exercise their religion, they could officially register their religious groups only as unions or foundations, and not as churches. Under the concordat, smaller branches of Eastern Orthodoxy in Georgia such as the

Russian Orthodox Russian Orthodoxy (russian: Русское православие) is the body of several churches within the larger communion of Eastern Orthodox Christianity, whose liturgy is or was traditionally conducted in Church Slavonic language. Most ...

Church were also subject to the jurisdiction of the GOC on all territory within the Georgian state. However, since July 2011 religious organizations in Georgia can be registered as legal entities under public law.

References

Christianity and law in the 21st century Georgian Orthodox Church Law of Georgia (country) 2002 treaties Treaties of Georgia (country) 2002 in Georgia (country) {{Georgia-stub