Bishop Rusudan Gotsiridze

Rusudan Gotsiridze is a consecrated bishop of the Evangelical Baptist Church of Georgia. She is the first female bishop in both the Evangelical Baptist Church of Georgia and the first ordained female bishop in the country of Georgia and Eastern Europe. She is a champion of women’s rights in the area, as well as an interfaith advocate, and a strong believer in the power of education. Bishop Rusudan Gotsiridze has spoken at the United Nations Council about the rights of ethnic and religious minorities in her area. She is also vocal about the protection and equality of LGBTQ+ people in her part of the world. For her strong advocacy work, she received the 2014 International Women of Courage Award by Michelle Obama, the former First Lady of the United States, as well as the Order of Honor, awarded by the President of Georgia in 2016.

Early Life and Education

Rusudan Gotsiridze was born in Tbilisi, Georgia, on February 8, 1975. She was born as the oldest of three children to parents Lado and Mzia Gotsiridze. She grew up in a staunchly Baptist family during the Soviet Union. Her grandparents were heavily involved in the church, with her grandfather, Lado Songhulashvili, being a pastor, and her grandmother, Natela Songhulashvili, being a member of the church choir. The suppression of religion in the Soviet Union meant that her family’s activity in the church was pushed underground, and she grew up in a culture of having to hide her faith. This allowed Gotsiridze to see things from a different perspective. Growing up, Gotsiridze observed a stark difference between her experiences at home and what she was taught in school. Gotsiridze got her bachelor’s degree in Western European literature from Tbilisi State University. She received a certificate in Theology from the school of Elijah International School for Ministers and Counselors. Meanwhile, in 2011, she received a Master’s in Theology from Ilia State University in Georgia.

Church Involvement and Consecration

In 2004, Gotsiridze was a human resources manager at World Vision International. Yet by 2006, Gotsiridze had been ordained as a minister, and on June 15, 2008, she was ordained as a full-fledged Bishop of the Evangelical Baptist Church. She has since served in many capacities, including as an Elected Member of the Church and Society Committee of the Conference of European Churches (CEC) in 2009 and as an Elected Chairperson of the Synod of the Evangelical Baptist Church of Georgia from 2010- 2014. From 2010- 2014, she taught a New Testament introduction class at the School of Elijah the Prophet. From 2010-2011, Gotsiridze was a Member of the Georgian delegation in the Theological Dialogue of the Anglican Church and Evangelical-Baptist Church of Georgia, as well as having been an elected member of the Analytical Board of the Religious Council in the framework of the Tolerance Centre at Public.

Additionally, she worked in the Defender’s Office from 2012-2018. She is also a founding member of the Board of the Interfaith Peace Movement “Institute of Muslim-Christian Fellowship.” Today, Gotsiridze is responsible for overseeing the Gori and central Kartali regions of Georgia, which includes traveling to these regions and delivering the Eucharist every month. She has also been a member of the Jury of the Annual Media Contest by the Tolerance Center since 2012.

Outside the Church

Outside of the church, Gotsiridze is very active in cultivating her community. From 2008 to 2010, she was the coordinator of the UNFPA Project combating gender-based violence in Georgia for the International Center on Conflicts and Negotiations (ICCN). From 2009-2013, she was the ICCN’s expert on gender and religious minority issues. In 2010, she coordinated the Ecumenical Theological Conference on “Assyrian Fathers” at Ilia State University. From 2012-2015, Gotsiridze was the Gender consultant of Mercy Corps Georgia. She was a founding member of the board of the Society for Positive Change organization in 2013. In 2015, she became a Member of the Jury of the Annual Media Contest by the Media Development Foundation (MDF). From 2015-2016, Gotsiridze was assisted in coordinating and conducting diversity training for teachers with the Society for Positive Change (SPC) and the Tolerance and Diversity Institute (TDI). In 2016, Bishop Rusudan conducted training for minority women, “Women’s Rights in a Diverse Society,” for the same organization. Today, you can find her as an invited lecturer in the Master’s programs of Sulkhan-Saba Orbeliani Teaching University, leading a program on gender egalitarianism in the Scripture, or at Ilia State University, leading a program on women’s ordination in Christian Traditions. She is also a major proponent for activism in her community. She is a staunch believer in the importance of interfaith dialogue and religious minority rights, as well as LGBTQ+ and women’s rights. She spoke at the 6th annual United Nations Forum on minority issues. She advocates for religious minorities in Georgia. She is also an expert trainer for the International Center on Conflicts and Negotiations. Gotsiridze also uses her spare time to give many public presentations and workshops in her home country of Georgia and around the globe.

Awards and Honors

In 2014, Bishop Rusudan Gotsiridze received the International Women of Courage award from Michelle Obama. She was awarded for her outstanding activism for minority rights, and was the first Georgian to win the award since its creation in 2007.

Gotsiridze also received the Order of Honor from the Georgian President, H.E. Giorgi Margvelashvili, in 2016.