Address of the Head of the Orthodox Church of Kazakhstan, Metropolitan Alexander of Astana and Kazakhstan, on the Occasion of the Feast of the Meeting of the Lord and the 30th Anniversary of the Parish of the Holy Chief Apostles Peter and Paul in the City

Today, we commemorate the sacred Gospel event—the Meeting of the Lord. This Feast is dedicated to the spiritual contemplation of the event described in the Gospel of Luke: forty days after the birth of the Christ Child, the Righteous Joseph the Betrothed and the Most Holy Theotokos, in accordance with the Law of Moses, brought Him to the Jerusalem Temple to present Him before the Lord (Luke 2:25–35). There, in the most sacred place of God’s chosen people, took place the mystical encounter between the Law and Grace, the Old Testament and the New, the Elder Simeon and the Divine Infant. The Meeting, as described in the Gospel, represents the most important encounter in a person’s life—the meeting with God. Through the knowledge of the Creator and Savior, through deep faith in Christ, people attain the meaning of existence, the purpose, and the moral foundation of their lives. Upon encountering God, a person seeks to actively embody the Gospel’s teachings, to overcome selfishness, to learn sacrificial love, and to be transformed by the light of the Heavenly Kingdom.

Through the centuries, the voice of Christ, calling us to meet Him, continues to resound: “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matt. 11:28). Blessed is the one who hears this Divine call and responds to it.

The Gospel Meeting of the Lord took place in the Jerusalem Temple—the sacred place chosen by the Creator Himself for communion with humanity. Likewise, for us today, the primary place of encounter with God remains the temple. Just as two thousand years ago, the faithful continue to come to the House of their Heavenly Father. In the Old Testament times, people would bring sacrificial animals to the temple, whereas now we offer to God the “sacrifice of praise, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name” (Heb. 13:15), and we worship Him “in spirit and in truth” (John 4:24).

The most important act performed beneath the grace-filled arches of the Church is the offering of the rational and bloodless Sacrifice—the celebration of the Most Holy Eucharist. On the eve of His Golgotha sufferings, the Savior instituted the Sacrament of Communion, eternally sealing within it His Sacrifice on the Cross for the life of the world.

By partaking in this Sacrament of Sacraments, we remember and experience in our hearts all that was accomplished for our sake—from Bethlehem to the Mount of Olives, from the Nativity to the Ascension. The entire history of our salvation, the entirety of the Gospel, unfolds before our spiritual eyes, and not only the past but also the coming Kingdom of God is revealed to us in these great and sacred moments.

Righteous Protopriest John of Kronstadt saw in the events of the Meeting of the Lord—in the way the Elder Simeon received the Christ Child into his arms—a foreshadowing of the Sacrament of Communion. “We have a greater happiness and blessedness than Saint Simeon,” says the Kronstadt pastor, explaining: “We have the joy not only of lifting the Divine Jesus in our hands but of receiving Him with our lips and hearts. And not just once in a lifetime, not ten times, but as often as we desire.”

In the same sermon on the Feast of the Meeting, the preacher addresses the Lord with a sorrowful call to repentance: “What have we come to? You come out daily to meet us at the gates of Your temple, and we respond with indifference.” It is vital for all of us to be grateful to God, to strive toward Him with all our hearts, with all our souls, with all our minds (Matt. 22:37), and to make every effort to answer His love. Participation in the Eucharist is one such noble response to the Lord and Savior and, at the same time, an effective means of purification and sanctification of our being, the greatest divine help on the path to salvation.

Today’s celebration is further enriched for the clergy and faithful of the Church of Saints Peter and Paul in the Southern Capital by the remembrance of a special milestone—thirty years since the beginning of the parish’s liturgical life. By historical standards, three decades may seem a short span, but for the clergy and parishioners, this time has been filled with many labors and efforts in building and adorning the church, organizing and developing various aspects of ecclesiastical life here, making it both unforgettable and significant. By the grace of God, what began as a humble house of prayer has grown into a beautiful and majestic church, and the once-small parish community has transformed into a large and united Orthodox family.

Celebrating the 30th anniversary of the Church of Saints Peter and Paul, we must offer our gratitude and prayerful remembrance for its builders, benefactors, and those who adorned it, as well as honor the memory of all who have served and prayed within its sacred walls. And, of course, we should acknowledge the noble labors of the rector, Protopriest Vladimir, the clergy, choir members, church workers, and benefactors.

For more than three decades, Protopriest Vladimir Shklyar has carried out his pastoral ministry to God and His people, always striving with great zeal to bear witness to the Resurrection of the Lord Jesus (Acts 4:33), so that the word of God might increase, and the number of disciples multiply greatly (Acts 6:7). He was the initiator and driving force behind the creation of this church dedicated to the foremost Apostles in the Southern Capital. Father Vladimir’s sons have followed in his footsteps—Protopriest Kirill now serves as the sacristan of the Church of Saints Peter and Paul, while Priest Andrey fulfills his obedience as assistant sacristan at the Ascension Cathedral.

As the Apostle says, God is not unjust to forget your work and the labor of love which you have shown in His name (Heb. 6:10). I would like to recall the deeply meaningful words of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill: “Those who build and restore churches enter history. Not only human history. The names of these people are specially inscribed in the Book of Life.”

According to Holy Scripture and Sacred Tradition, an Orthodox church is Heaven on earth, the house of God and the gate of Heaven (Gen. 28:17), the high and exalted throne of the Lord (Isa. 6:1). Temples, radiant with grace, become for us schools of spiritual life. Here, as we are enlightened by the incorruptible words of the Gospel, as we listen attentively to the prayers and the teachings of the Holy Fathers, we are nurtured in faith, strengthened in hope, and perfected in love. And the most important event that takes place under the church’s sacred vaults is the celebration of the Sacrament of Sacraments, the Divine Liturgy, during which the Bloodless Sacrifice is offered for the life of the world, and the faithful partake of the most pure and life-giving Mysteries of Christ for the remission of sins and for life eternal, for the healing of soul and body.

May our zeal for attending church never diminish, may our love for the divine services never grow cold, and may the joy of participating in the Divine Liturgy never fade. Through the prayers of the Most Blessed Theotokos, the foremost Apostles Peter and Paul, and the New Martyrs and Confessors of Kazakhstan, may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God the Father, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with us all (2 Cor. 13:13).