David V ( ka, დავით V, born as Khariton Devdariani (ხარიტონ დევდარიანი) (April 6, 1903 – November 9, 1977) was a

Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia '' Catholicos-Patriarch'' has been the title of the heads of the Georgian Orthodox Church since 1010. The first Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia was Melkisedek I (1010–1033). In the 15th century the Georgian Orthodox Church was divided into t ...

from July 2, 1972, until his death. His full title was ''His Holiness and Beatitude, Archbishop of

Mtskheta Mtskheta ( ka, მცხეთა, tr ) is a city in Mtskheta-Mtianeti province of Georgia. It is one of the oldest cities in Georgia as well as one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the World. Itis located approximately north of T ...

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 ...

and Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia''. Born in the village of Mirotsminda (now

Kharagauli Municipality Kharagauli Municipality ( ka, ხარაგაულის მუნიციპალიტეტი, Xaragaulis municip’alit’et’i) is a district of Georgia, in the region of Imereti. Its main town is Kharagauli. It has an area of 914&nb ...

Imereti Imereti ( Georgian: იმერეთი) is a region of Georgia situated in the central-western part of the republic along the middle and upper reaches of the Rioni River. Imereti is the most populous region in Georgia. It consists of 11 munic ...

), David became a priest in 1927 and a

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

in 1956. From 1959 to 1972 he served as a

chorbishop A chorbishop is a rank of Christian clergy below bishop. The name chorepiscope or chorepiscopus (plural chorepiscopi) is taken from the Greek and means "rural bishop". History Chorepiscopi are first mentioned by Eusebius as existing in the seco ...

to Catholicos-Patriarch Ephraim II, upon whose death he succeeded to the position of primate of the

Georgian Orthodox Church The Apostolic Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Georgia ( ka, საქართველოს სამოციქულო ავტოკეფალური მართლმადიდებელი ეკლესია, tr), commonly ...

. David V's ascension to the patriarchal see was followed by some controversy. Unlike his predecessor Ephraim II, who frequently appealed to Georgian patriotism, David never gained popularity because of his perceived loyalty to the

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

regime. Furthermore, Georgian dissidents suspected that the Soviet security arm (

KGB The KGB (russian: links=no, lit=Committee for State Security, Комитет государственной безопасности (КГБ), a=ru-KGB.ogg, p=kəmʲɪˈtʲet ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)əj bʲɪzɐˈpasnəsʲtʲɪ, Komitet gosud ...

) was involved in David's election by rigging it and destroying Ephraim's will, which had allegedly endorsed Bishop Ilia of Sukhumi and Abkhazia as his successor. The Georgian nationalist underground claimed in their ''

samizdat Samizdat (russian: самиздат, lit=self-publishing, links=no) was a form of dissident activity across the Eastern Bloc in which individuals reproduced censored and underground makeshift publications, often by hand, and passed the document ...

'' publications that corruption and moral depravity flourished in the church under David V. He was also accused of being involved, along with Georgian Communist party officials and the KGB, in the robbery of Georgian church treasures.Ramet, Sabrina P. (1989), Religion and Nationalism in Soviet and East European Politics, pp. 35-6. Duke University Press, David V died in

and was buried at the Sioni Cathedral in 1977. He was succeeded by

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 Ilia may refer to: Science and medicine *''Apatura ilia'' or ...

, whom the Soviets had allegedly tried to keep out of office.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:David 05 Of Georgia, Patriarch 1903 births 1977 deaths Catholicoses and Patriarchs of Georgia (country) Eastern Orthodox Christians from Georgia (country)