Georgia Mourns Patriarch Ilia II

0:00It's March 22nd. This is Global News Today, AI-powered stories from around the world. Large crowds filled the center of Tbilisi on Sunday to mourn Patriarch Ilya the spiritual leader of George's Orthodox Church. He died earlier this week in hospital at age 93 after serving nearly 50 years in the role. His funeral cortege made its way along the river embankment to Cionic Cathedral where he was laid to rest. The event drew Georgians from all walks of life, marking a somber moment in the capital. Mourners of every age lie in the streets, many holding flowers and candles. They wept openly and clapped as the coffin passed, expressing deep love and grief for the man they saw as a father figure in unifier. Ilya II took over his Patriarch in 1977, steering the church through the Soviet era and the civil wars of the 1990s. His long leadership held told the deeply faithful nation together during tough times.

1:00Georgia has embraced Orthodox Christianity since the early 4th century, making Ilya II's legacy a cornerstone of its identity that will echo for.