ACADEMICIAN KORNELI KEKELIDZE’S UNPUBLISHED WORK „THE CATHOLIC CHURCH OF ABKHAZIA“

Abstract

Abstract. The unpublished manuscript by Academician Korneli Kekelidze titled „The Catholicosate of Abkhazia“ is preserved in the personal archive of Simon Janashia at the Historical Central Archive of the National Archives of Georgia. The work consists of ten small-format, typewritten pages. There are corrections in pen here and there, and at the end of the work, the document concludes with the bibliography and initials „K. K“ written in pen. The last letter of which is written in square brackets „Ekelidze“, or „K. Kekelidze“. This confirms that the work belongs to Korneli Kelelidze (the signature matches the calligraphy of Korneli Kekelidze). In addition, at the end of the work, at the bottom-left corner of the final page, there is a note „S. Janashia“. This circumstance and the fact that the work was found in the personal collection of academician Simon Janashia lead us to believe that Korneli Kekelidze submitted the work to Simon Janashia, presumably for review, and most likely, the latter made minor corrections to it (the corrections in the work, in our opinion, resemble Simon Janashia’s calligraphy). The bibliography indicated at the end of the work cites the latest published work, which dates back to 1930. As far as we know, Academician Simon Janashia passed away in 1947. Therefore, we can conclude that the aforementioned manuscript by Academician Kornel Kekelidze was written between 1930 and 1947. In his work, Kekelidze provides an argumentative analysis concerning the timeframe and circumstances of the formation of the Abkhazian Catholicosate as well as the manner in which the Mtskheta Catholicosate obtained specific privileges in the united Georgian Kingdom (Kingdom of Georgia), where both Catholicosates coexisted. This is the first time that Kekelidze’s unpublished work has been the subject of widespread criticism. The article employs the method of content analysis.