Tbilisi - Pope John Paul began a visit to Georgia yesterday, calling for reconciliation between the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches after centuries of mistrust and animosity.
But in a public rebuff, the head of Georgia's Orthodox Christians, Patriarch Ilya II, barred his flock from attending a public Mass to be celebrated today by the pontiff in Tbilisi's Palace of Sport.
Orthodox Christians' presence at a Catholic Mass was "inadmissible", the Patriarchate said in a statement.