Church as mediator...
Unless you pay close attention to world news bulletins, you probably haven't heard about the unrest in the Republic of Georgia in the past several days. The current president, Mikhail Saakashvili, rode a wave of popular sentiment to the top during the 2003 "Rose Revolution." However, much anger and frustration has now been directed against him, culminating in violent reprisals against protesters and the declaration of a state of emergency on Wednesday. But today a government representative met with opposition leaders, and this meeting was held at the residents of the Georgian Orthodox patriarch. According to this Reuters brief, the patriarch chaired the meeting. Naturally, this pithy sub-story doesn't dive into the significance of an Orthodox Christian leader serving as a moderator between the nation-state and other political figures. Most Orthodox churches in Eastern Europe and the Caucuses are the official state religions of their countries or at least have special privileges. The situation is fluid, though - in Georgia and certainly in other countries trying to navigate the recognition of an Orthodox heritage and yet the growing presence of "insurgent" groups such as Baptists or Pentecostals. Patriarch Ilia II has several times met with Bishop Malkhaz Songulashvili of the Evangelical Baptist Church of Georgia and has encouraged positive relations. Given this, what does he make of the role of his office and of Georgian Orthodoxy in the body politic? Does he see the role of the (Orthodox) Church as a guarantor of state stability and identity? Or does he view his mediation more generally as consequent of the Christian's obligation to witness to the peace of the gospel? Will other Christian groups be encouraged to play such roles? Or will they be dismissed as irrelevant to the integrity of Georgian national life?
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