Jvari Monastery Temporarily Closed as Clerics Demand Vendors Out
By Gvantsa Gabekhadze
Wednesday, January 16
The historic Jvari Monastery in the town of Mtskheta, which is on the list of UNESCO World Heritage, has been closed for everyone but clerics on Monday because of the street vending in front of the building.
The spokesperson of the Georgian Patriarchate Andria Jaghmaidze says that the monastery was closed by the decision of its head, Konstantine Tchincharauli, due to the mess and disorder created by vendors at the entrance of the 6th-century monastery.
“The monastery is of the high importance and is frequently visited by high-level delegations, tourists and the parish. It is natural that the head of the monastery wants to see the order near the church,” Jaghmaidze said.
Vendors claim that monks want to build their cells there and their vending boxes create problems for them.
They also say that they wanted to meet with Tchincharauli but they were refused at the meeting.
Mayor of Mtskheta Giorgi Kapanadze told Rustavi 2 that he was against the closure of the monastery and expressed his view when Tchincharauli phoned him and informed about his decision.
“However, It was not up to me to make a decision regarding the opening or closing of the monastery,” Kapanadze said.
Dozens of people visit the monastery on daily basis and many of them tried to find an alternative way to appear in the yard of the church when they saw that the monastery was closed.
Jvari in English means “cross” as the monastery has the shape of a cross.
