Kalistrate by Levan Urushadze

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His Holiness and Beatitude Kalistrate (Secular name: Kalistrate M. Tsintsadze. April 12,1866-February 3, 1953) was a famous Georgian eclessiastic figure and scientist, Doctor of Theology, Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia in 1932-1953.

He was born in 1866, in a small village Tobanieri (Imereti region of Western Georgia). In 1888 he graduated from the Theological Seminary of Tbilisi, in 1891 from the Kiev Theological Academy (Ukraine). In 1892 he received a degree of Candidate of Theology.

In 1900-1917 Archimandrit Kalistrate was active participant of the fighting for restoration of the Autocephaly of the Georgian Orthodox and Apostolic Church (in 1811 the Autocephaly was destroyed by the Tsarist Russian Empire). In March, 1917 the Autocephaly of the Georgian Orthodox Church was restored.

In 1925 Kalistrate became a rank of Bishop, in 1927 - rank of Metropolitan. In 1932-1953 His Holiness and Beatitude Kalistrate was a Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia.

Main fields of scientific activity of His Holiness and Beatitude Kalistrate were: history of the Georgian Orthodox Church, source studies of the history of the Georgian Church and Georgia, Rustvelology (Shota Rustaveli was a great Georgian poet of the 12th century), history of the Georgian Christian literature. He was author of many important scientific-research articles and monographs.

His Holiness and Beatitude Kalistrate died in 1953, in Tbilisi. He is buried in the Tbilisi Sioni Cathedral.