Shio III is new Catholicos-Patriarch of Orthodox Church in Georgia
The Georgian Orthodox Church Synod elected Metropolitan Shio III as new Catholicos-Patriarch on May 11, following Ilia II's death. Shio III, born Elizbar Teimuraz Mujiri in Tbilisi, will also hold titles of Archbishop of Mtskheta‑Tbilisi and Metropolitan of Abkhazia and Bichvinta. The election took place at Holy Trinity Cathedral with 1,200 delegates, and the enthronement ceremony was held at Svetitskhoveli Cathedral. Cardinal Kurt Koch of the Vatican congratulated the new patriarch, urging strengthened ecumenical dialogue and friendship between churches.
5 months ago
Shio III, formerly Metropolitan Elizbar Mujiri, was elected on 11 May 2026 as the new Catholicos‑Patriarch of All Georgia, succeeding the late Ilia II. The election was celebrated by the Georgian Synod and quickly welcomed by the Holy See, highlighting both continuity within the Georgian Orthodox Church and renewed opportunities for Catholic‑Orthodox dialogue. 1 2
The Holy Synod in Tbilisi chose Metropolitan Shio of Senaki and Chkhorotsku as Catholicos‑Patriarch, with 1,200 delegates present at the vote and 22 of 39 votes cast in his favor. His enthronement took place at Svetitskhoveli Cathedral the following day. 1
Born Elizbar Teimuraz Mujiri in Tbilisi in 1969, he earned a cello diploma before entering monastic life in 1993, taking the name Shio. He completed theological studies in Moscow, served as bishop, archbishop and metropolitan, and oversaw Georgian Orthodox communities in Australia and New Zealand. 2
Cardinal Kurt Koch, Prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, sent a congratulatory message praising Shio III’s “spiritual heritage” and urging deeper fraternal dialogue. Pope Leo XIV also wrote to the new patriarch, praying for “light, discernment, and strength” in his ministry. 1 2
Commentators note that Shio III’s theological stance appears aligned with Ilia II, including a cautious approach to ecumenism and a non‑recognition of the Ecumenical Patriarchate’s 2018 decision on the Ukrainian Church. This suggests the Georgian Church will maintain its traditional closeness to the Russian Orthodox Church while remaining an independent autocephalous body. The Vatican’s prompt congratulations signal a desire to engage the new patriarch early, potentially revitalizing bilateral dialogue that has historically been restrained. 2
The Georgian Orthodox Church, tracing its roots to apostolic times and recognized as autocephalous since the 5th century, has long been a pillar of national identity. Its Golden Age (11th–13th centuries) saw significant influence across the Orthodox world, while Soviet persecution severely curtailed its activity. Since independence in 1991, the Church has reclaimed its central role in Georgian society, a trajectory continued under Shio III. 2
Examine the impact of Shio III’s election on Catholic‑Orthodox dialogue
Shio III’s election (understood here, from the Church’s public correspondence, as his assumption of a major canonical responsibility in the Orthodox Church of Georgia) would be expected to affect Catholic–Orthodox dialogue mainly in tone, ecclesial relationships, and local pastoral conditions—because the Catholic side consistently frames dialogue as a work of communion in truth and charity, pursued through prayer, institutional collaboration, and the purification of historical memories.
In Pope Leo XIV’s message to “His Eminence Shio,” the Holy See addresses him directly at a delicate moment tied to the transition after the death of Patriarch Ilia II, and it does so in explicitly fraternal terms. The Pope assures “fraternal solidarity” and promises that he is “join[ing]” the Orthodox leadership “in prayer” during a moment of grief and transition.
That matters for dialogue because the Church’s ecumenical posture toward Orthodoxy (especially after 1054) is not merely theoretical: it is meant to be a concrete practice of mutual charity and reconciliation. The 1965 Catholic–Orthodox joint declaration describes the removal of the anathemas “from the midst of the Church” as an act meant to overcome what has “influenced actions up to our day” and “hindered closer relations in charity.”
Pope Leo XIV also characterizes the leadership of Ilia II (and by extension invokes the continuity needed in Shio) as a “voice of reconciliation” and a “tireless builder of unity,” and he prays that Shio’s ministry will be marked by “pastoral charity.”
Ecumenical impact: when the Catholic head of the Church explicitly prays for and highlights reconciliation-oriented leadership, it helps set expectations that dialogue should be pursued not only through commissions, but also through lived pastoral dispositions.
While Shio III’s personal leadership is important, Catholic–Orthodox dialogue is also structured through established joint bodies. The Joint Committee of Orthodox and Catholic Bishops in the United States, for example, prays for the success of the Orthodox “Holy and Great Council” and expresses confidence that unity among local Orthodox Churches “will greatly benefit the quest for unity and communion between Catholics and Orthodox.”
Similarly, Pope Leo XIV, in speaking about Catholic commitment to full communion, explicitly thanks the Ecumenical Patriarchate for its “ongoing support” for the Joint International Commission for Theological Dialogue and hopes that all autocephalous Orthodox Churches will return to “take an active part” in the endeavor.
Ecumenical implication: if Shio III’s election increases or restores effective participation, coordination, or cooperation among Orthodox leadership in Georgia (including engagement with broader Orthodox processes), the Catholic side has a clear doctrinal and diplomatic reason to see this as helpful—because the Catholic Church links progress in dialogue to inter-Orthodox unity and broad participation, not to bilateral gestures alone.
A frequent Orthodox concern—reflected implicitly in centuries of misunderstanding—is whether dialogue presumes Latin Catholic authority in a way that resembles “power.” Pope Benedict XVI’s message to the Ecumenical Patriarchate frames the Bishop of Rome’s Petrine ministry “not… in the perspective of power,” but “within an ecclesiology of communion,” as a “service to unity in truth and charity.”
This is relevant to Shio III’s impact because a new Orthodox primate can either reduce or intensify perceived anxiety about Roman intentions. The Catholic teaching approach presented here is meant to assure Orthodox leadership that the purpose is a communion ecclesiology—seeking “together… the forms in which the ministry of the Bishop of Rome may accomplish a service of love recognized by one and all.”
Ecumenical implication: if Shio III’s priorities align with reconciliation and unity (as Pope Leo XIV prays and recalls), then dialogue is more likely to proceed in a climate where the Orthodox can engage without feeling that unity is being pursued through coercive interpretations of authority.
The Catholic–Orthodox relationship is shaped not only by doctrinal texts, but also by how leaders and communities interpret history. Pope John Paul II emphasized that “the importance of a purification of memories makes itself felt at every turn,” describing “tragic events of history” as leaving a “sad legacy” in both Catholics’ and Orthodox Christians’ minds and psychology.
He frames the way forward as writing “a new history in a spirit of brotherly love, respect and cooperation.”
Ecumenical implication: Shio III’s leadership—especially at a transitional moment marked by the death of Ilia II—creates a spiritual “window” for the Orthodox Church of Georgia to lean into reconciliation and unity rather than heightened defensiveness. That would harmonize with the Catholic emphasis on forgiving historical wounds and rebuilding trust.
The provided documents do not supply details about Shio III’s election platform or specific ecumenical initiatives (e.g., policy changes, new formal joint projects, or altered engagement with Catholic dialogue structures). What they do provide is the Catholic Church’s public response to his assumption of responsibility and its ongoing framework for Catholic–Orthodox dialogue.
So, the most defensible impact assessment from the supplied sources is:
From a Catholic perspective grounded in the cited materials, Shio III’s election is best understood as an opportunity for greater fraternal stability—a chance to deepen the reconciliation-centered tone that Catholic texts emphasize, to support the practical cooperation of Orthodox participation in dialogue structures, and to sustain the dialogue’s “communion, not domination” method amid the long memory of past rupture.