GTU Rector – Let us ask the Virgin Mary to give us strength, so that our choice in the future will become a source of goodness, peace, and development for Georgia

The Rector of the Georgian Technical University, Academician David Gurgenidze, congratulates his colleagues and students on the Day of the arrival of Andrew the First-Called in Georgia, and the day of country allotted to the Virgin Mary.

As David Gurgenidze notes in his congratulatory message, May 12 symbolically unites an important event in recent Georgia history – the enthronement of the Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia, Archbishop of Mtskheta-Tbilisi, Metropolitan of Tskhum-Abkhazia, His Holiness and Beatitude Shio III. Speaking about the role of the Church in the spiritual life of the nation, the rector states that the Church has historically been one of the main foundations of education, culture, and moral upbringing in Georgia.

“Today is the day of the country allotted to the Virgin Mary and the arrival of Saint Andrew the First-Called in Georgia. Today is the day of hope – the preaching of Saint Andrew the First-Called and the belief of our country allotted to the Most Holy Virgin Mary represent one of the foundations of spirituality on which our national identity was built, is being built, and will be built.

On May 12, another significant chapter in Georgia’s recent history was written – it is symbolic that this glorious day coincided with the enthronement of His Holiness and Beatitude Shio III, the Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia, Archbishop of Mtskheta-Tbilisi, and Metropolitan of Tskhum-Abkhazia. These three great dates combined in one day – spiritual beginning, divine protection, and the election of the new Chief Shepherd of the Church – are the foundation that obliges us to serve the motherland, faith, education, and science with greater energy.

Today, as we commemorate the apostolic labors of Saint Andrew the First-Called, glorify Georgia’s allotted to the Virgin Mary, and celebrate the enthronement of Catholicos-Patriarch Shio III, we must once again recognize our common responsibility to the country, society, and future generations. This is a responsibility that connects us to our historical past and to our future, the formation of which depends on our decisions and actions today.

We are part of a process that comes from the past and continues into the future. Everything we do today, even if it seems insignificant to us, leaves a certain mark and influences the direction in which the future will develop. Let us ask the Mother of God to give us strength, so that our choices are thoughtful and filled with responsibility, so that we do not lose the feeling of how important each step we take today is, and that these steps will become a source of goodness, peace, and an opportunity for the development of our homeland in the future.”

  – Academician David Gurgenidze