THE UNKNOWN LATIN SOURCE ON THE PRACTICE OF INDULGENC OF THE DECEASED IN GEORGIA

Abstract

    The objective of the presented paper is to study the practice of putting the Deed of the Sins’ Remission  in the deceased’s hand before the funeral  in Georgia, in the Orthodox Indulgence context. This issue has not been studied in the Georgian scientific literature since.  There are not any Georgian sources about it.  One Latin source which is available to us, obviously confirms the existence of  the deceased’s Indulgence or Greek ‘’ synchōrochartia („συγχωροχαρτια“) in Georgia, which is the equivalence of the Latin ‘’Indulgence’’,  in particular, in the Samegrelo Principality in the 60s of the XVIIth century.   The author of the mentioned source, Theatine missionary Don Giuseppe Zamp who activated in the Samegrelo Principality  in 1652-1679, brought a short text of the Prayer  Absolution for the deceased, which analyze gives us the opportunity to conclude that in Georgia  a deceased  was buried with the Eastern-Orthodox Indulgence in his/her hand which in fact, was the Sins’ Remission Indulgence according to the Catholic  analogy. Wealthy  people bought it during their lifetime. It was put in a deceased or a mortal’s hand and he/she was buried like this. In the Deed or according to the source language in the ‘’Card’’, the bishop confirmed that its owner always led a  Christian’s  life, kept the Lent, confessed and was an exemplary of a good behavior. This Deed was tightly held by the deceased and it was the permission  to Heaven.

The bishops were paid a large amount of money for the Deed of ‘’the Sins’  Remission’’ or the Indulgence in Samegrelo Principality, which was a way of the ecclesiastics’ enrichment. However, it is difficult to say how much it was widespread all over Georgia. According to the provided  source, it should  have been inaccessible to  the lower social circle, as it is mentioned there that only wealthy people could buy it. The analyzes of the context of introducing and practice of the Orthodox Indulgence by the Greek Church (XV-XVI cc.), convinces us that the text of the prayer of absolution  or the practice of the Indulgence before the funeral, was introduced to Georgia in the 60s of the XVII th century from the Patriarchate of Jerusalem.  

The Latin unknown source gave us the opportunity to arise the mentioned problem as a fact and provided  us with certain  knowledge about the Georgian Orthodox Indulgence. This creates  a prerequisite for the further studying of the problem.

Keywords: Catholic Indulgence; Orthodox Indulgence; the Deed of the Prayer  Absolution; Dositheus II; the Bishop of Tsalenjikha.