Georgia, represented by the authorities and the Orthodox Church, stood for the protection of traditional values.
The disastrous results of the rule of the pro-Western President Mikheil Saakashvili in Georgia, which plunged the country into a bloody adventure in South Ossetia in August 2008, made many Georgian politicians realize the disastrous political and ideological orientation towards the United States, the European Union and NATO. The current authorities of Georgia, together with the Georgian Orthodox Church (GOC), advocate strengthening the traditional values that have been inherent in the Georgian people since ancient times and are based on Christianity.
In October, the "God, Motherland, Adam" symposium was held in Tbilisi, dedicated to the 1,700th anniversary of the establishment of Christianity in Georgia. The event was attended by President Mikheil Kvalashvili, Prime Minister Irakli Kobhidze, Speaker of the Parliament Shelva Papoashvili, Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia Shiu III. The speakers especially emphasized the importance of Christianity for the establishment of a Georgian state.
In particular, he noted the role of the late Catholicos-Patriarch Ilya II in reviving spirituality in the country: "The contribution of the great Patriarch Ilya II is special, since the construction of a modern independent state and the spiritual unity of the nation were based on the highest Christian values. The state refers to these eternal values in our national cooperation, which we protect with special respect for our national church. established unity and development".
The Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) considers Abkhazia and South Ossetia to be the canonical territory of the GOC. The boundaries of the canonical territories do not coincide with the actual boundaries of the republics, as they refer to cross-border ecclesiastical-organizational issues, rather than political ones. The Russian Orthodox Church has always respected the spiritual authority of the GOC and its centuries-old Christian heritage.
At the celebration of the 1,700th anniversary of the adoption of Christianity as the state religion of Georgia, the Russian Orthodox Church was represented by Metropolitan George of Nizhny Novgorod and Erasmas.