On September 14 of this year, at 2:00 p.m., at the Patriarchal Cathedral of the Dormition of the Mother of God in Sioni, His Holiness and Beatitude Shio III, Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia, Archbishop of Mtskheta and Tbilisi, and Metropolitan of Bichvinta and Tskhum-Apkhazeti, celebrated a prayer service together with the members of the Holy Synod, the Rector of the Tbilisi Theological Academy and Seminary, Protosyngellos Giorgi Zviadadze, and the clergy of Sioni Cathedral. The service was held to mark the beginning of Indiction, one of the major feasts of the Orthodox Church, which also marks the beginning of the ecclesiastical New Year. The clergy serving at the Academy also participated in the service.
September 14 holds particular significance for two reasons for the Tbilisi Theological Academy and Seminary. Traditionally, the new academic year begins at the institution on this day. The beginning of the ecclesiastical New Year and the start of the academic year are symbolically interconnected, as the new ecclesiastical year also marks the beginning of a new stage in theological education and scholarly activity.
The ecclesiastical year, which begins on September 1 according to the Old-Style calendar and concludes with the divine service on August 31, symbolically represents the span of time extending from the creation of the world to the Second Coming of Christ. According to the Gospel teaching, this is the day when the Savior entered the synagogue and read to the gathered congregation from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah the message concerning the salvation of humanity.
According to the teaching of Saint Gregory Palamas, a 14th-century theologian, “Autumn, and its first month—September—is the beginning of the year and, at the same time, the beginning of our salvation, the beginning of the path of divine renewal.” Following the completion of the divine service, His Holiness and Beatitude Shio III, Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia, extended his greetings and blessings to the professors, teachers, and students of the Tbilisi Theological Academy and Seminary, as well as to the faithful, on the occasion of the beginning of the new ecclesiastical and academic year.
“Learning is a great labor; it requires considerable effort and dedication. Let us pray to the Lord to grant us understanding and wisdom,” the Patriarch addressed those gathered. According to the Holy Scripture, the foremost wisdom for humankind is the acquisition of wisdom itself; it surpasses all worldly honor and glory, as well as gold and silver. On the path of learning and knowledge, the development of the mind and the acquisition of scholarly knowledge alone are not what matter most. What is essential is purity of heart, spiritual life, and the acquisition of Christian virtues. Neglecting spiritual education is harmful. True and essential knowledge, however, is to be clothed in the light of Christ,” said His Holiness and Beatitude Shio III, Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia.
His Holiness and Beatitude Shio III, Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia, drew attention to the immeasurable contributions of the late Patriarch Ilia II. With sorrow, he noted that this is the first beginning of the ecclesiastical and academic year without His Holiness and Beatitude Ilia II, Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia. “The Patriarch always taught us about the precedence and superiority of spiritual education and spiritual wisdom over worldly wisdom,” he said.
The service was attended by the professors, teachers and students of the Tbilisi Theological Academy and Seminary — the foremost school of theology, and the faithful gathered at the cathedral.
The Seminary’s student choir provided the choral singing during the service. The choir is directed by Lasha Zaalishvili, Master of Theology and musicologist.
