On the Feast Day of the Three Holy Hierarchs, a Liturgy with Elements of the Greek Language Was Held at the Church of Christ the Savior in the Southern Capital

February 12, 2025 – The celebration of the Synaxis of the Ecumenical Teachers and Holy Hierarchs Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian, and John Chrysostom.

The establishment of this feast dates back to the reign of the Byzantine Emperor Alexios I Komnenos, when disputes arose in Constantinople regarding the primacy of one of these Church Fathers. According to tradition, in the year 1084, the Metropolitan of Euchaïta, John—renowned preacher and hymnographer—had a vision of the three hierarchs appearing together and instructing him to establish a common day for their commemoration, declaring that they are equal before God.

Bishop Gennady of Kaskelen, Chancellor of the Kazakhstani Metropolitan District, celebrated the Divine Liturgy with elements of the Greek language at the Trinity Church of the Nativity of Christ Cathedral in Almaty.

Serving alongside His Grace were: the sacristan of the Nativity of Christ Cathedral, Protopriest Alexander Gaichenya; the rector of the Theophany Church in Almaty, Protopriest Valery Shavrin; the rector of the Iveron Church in the village of Boraldai, Hegumen Philaret (Petrochenko); the chairman of the Society of Orthodox Physicians of Kazakhstan, Protopriest Anatoly Izmerov; the rector of the Elijah Church in the village of Karaoy, Protopriest Georgy Lagovsky; the rector of the Church of the Holy and Right-Believing Prince Alexander Nevsky in the city of Priozersk, Karaganda Region, Priest Oleg Ismagilov; the sacristan of the Kazan Cathedral in Almaty, Priest Georgy Rublinsky; Hierodeacon Athanasius (Kozel), and Deacon Georgy Tkachenko.

The choir of the Church of Christ the Savior, directed by E. Skorova, sang during the service.

At the conclusion of the Liturgy, a glorification was performed before the icon of the Holy Hierarchs, after which Bishop Gennady addressed the faithful with an archpastoral sermon on the significance of the spiritual labors of the Ecumenical Fathers and Teachers of the Church—Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian, and John Chrysostom.