The Feast of the Holy Preeminent Apostles Peter and Paul – Patronal Feast of the Church of Saints Peter and Paul in Almaty

July 12, 2025 – the feast of the holy, glorious, and all-praised preeminent apostles Peter and Paul.

Metropolitan Alexander of Astana and Kazakhstan celebrated the Divine Liturgy at the Church of the Preeminent Apostles Peter and Paul in the city of Almaty. The church of Saints Peter and Paul houses great Orthodox relics – particles of the relics of the Apostles Peter and Paul and fragments of the tombs of the heavenly patrons of the parish, gifted to the church by Metropolitan Alexander of Astana and Kazakhstan.

Concelebrating with the Primate of the Orthodox Church of Kazakhstan were the vicars of the Astana diocese: Bishop Gennady of Kaskelen, Chancellor of the Kazakhstan Metropolis, and Bishop Klavdian of Taldykorgan; Dean of the Almaty churches and rector of St. Nicholas Cathedral, Protopriest Valery Zakharov; Rector of the Church of the Icon of the Mother of God “Joy of All Who Sorrow” in Almaty, Protopriest Evgeny Vorobyov; Rector of the Church of Saints Peter and Paul, Protopriest Vladimir Shklyar; Head of the Metropolis Department for Public Relations and sacristan of the Ascension Cathedral, Protopriest Alexander Suvorov; Rector of the Almaty Theological Seminary and head of the Information and Publishing Department of the Metropolis, Protopriest Evgeny Ivanov; Rector of the Epiphany Church, Protopriest Valery Shavrin; Sacristan of the Church of Saints Peter and Paul, Protopriest Kirill Shklyar; Head of the Metropolitan’s Personal Secretariat, Hieromonk Prokhor (Yendovitsky); Sacristan of the Kazan Cathedral, Priest Georgy Rublinsky; Vice-Rector for Academic Affairs of the Almaty Theological Seminary, Priest Petr Bakhtiyarov; Head of the Administrative Secretariat of the Metropolitan, Priest Georgy Sidorov; Priest Alexander Bogdanov; Protodeacon Nikolai Grinkevich; Protodeacon Vladimir Syrovatsky; Deacon Konstantin Chupachenko; Deacon Alexander Piven; and Deacon Georgy Tkachenko.

The hymns of the Liturgy were performed by the choir of the Church of Saints Peter and Paul under the direction of I.N. Korovina.

At the litany for the departed, fervent prayers were offered for the departed builders, beautifiers, benefactors, and all deceased parishioners of the Church of Saints Peter and Paul.

The homily after the Communion verse was delivered by Protopriest Evgeny Ivanov.

The Liturgy concluded with glorification of the Apostles Peter and Paul – the clergy and choir sang the troparion, kontakion, and magnification to the preeminent disciples of Christ, and His Eminence read a prayer to the saints.

In accordance with tradition, the rite of blessing the first fruits of the new harvest was performed. The blessing of newly ripened fruits on the feast day of the Apostles Peter and Paul in the southern regions of Kazakhstan and in the countries of Central Asia was blessed by the ever-memorable Patriarch Alexy I (Simansky) at the request of the hierarchs of the southern dioceses of the Russian Orthodox Church.

His Eminence Metropolitan Alexander addressed the participants of the divine service with an archpastoral homily.

A polychronion (many years) was proclaimed to the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus’; to the head and episcopate of the Kazakhstan Metropolis; to the President, authorities, armed forces, and all the people of Kazakhstan.

Metropolitan Alexander congratulated Priest Georgy Sidorov on the anniversary of his priestly ordination and Priest Petr Bakhtiyarov on his name day. His Eminence presented the priests with a prosphora, thanked them for their labors, and wished them strength of soul and body and the mercy of God in their continued service to the Holy Church.

The video recording of the metropolitan’s divine service was carried out by the media studio of the Kazakhstan Metropolis “Semirechye” (director – Honored Worker of Culture V.L. Posadneva, operator – A. Schmidt); photographic documentation was provided by A. Shcheglov, an employee of the Information Department.

A live broadcast of the divine service was streamed on the YouTube channel “Proobraz” through the initiative and with the support of the public foundation “ELEOS-MEIRIM” (director – V.M. Kapsamun).

“Today the Church of Christ glorifies the two great disciples of the Savior, named the preeminent apostles – Peter, burning with faith, and Paul, glorious in wisdom. The Lord commanded all His apostles to go to the nations and teach them, ‘baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit’ (cf. Matthew 28:19). The disciples of the Savior faithfully fulfilled this commandment, visiting various countries and preaching the Gospel to different peoples. But none were more renowned for their preaching or labored more diligently than the apostles Peter and Paul. Into a world darkened by pagan delusions, filled with falsehood, selfishness, and malice, they brought heavenly truth and the light of Christ, revealed to mankind the Kingdom of God, granted spiritual freedom, and proclaimed ‘righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit’ (Romans 14:17). They led thousands upon thousands to the knowledge of the Son of God, Crucified and Risen, and established Christian communities throughout the world, founding for centuries to come the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ, ‘which He purchased with His own Blood’ (Acts 20:28). The preaching of the Gospel, care for each community of believers, and the building of the Church in a pagan world was no simple task. Today, at the Divine Liturgy, we heard a reading from the epistle of the Apostle Paul to the Corinthians, in which he recounts his sufferings, tribulations, and hardships. He undertook perilous journeys, escaped bandits and shipwrecks, endured heat and cold, imprisonment, beatings with rods, and stonings – but nothing could deter Saint Paul from his apostolic calling. The Apostle Peter likewise endured trials, preaching in Jerusalem, Syria, Asia Minor, and Italy. He became the first bishop of Antioch, and later of Rome. The apostles Peter and Paul sealed with martyrdom their fidelity to the Lord who had chosen them and the truth of their preaching. Centuries pass, generations change, yet from the very beginning of the Church and to this day, the God-inspired writings of the preeminent apostles are heard by the ears of the faithful, sung in churches and read in homes, guiding people on the path of salvation, revealing the will of God, and explaining heavenly mysteries. The apostolic epistles may be called paternal letters, addressed both to the entirety of the Church and to each of us individually. Within them are contained the truths of the Orthodox faith and countless lessons for life in Christ; they hold all that we need for rightly understanding the purpose of our earthly existence and for being strengthened on the path to the Kingdom of God. The power of the witness of Christ’s disciples endures to this day, and we are their heirs, the successors of their labors. The Orthodox Church is called apostolic precisely because it continues the apostolic ministry and witness to the world. It is wrong to think that this testimony is the task only of archpastors and priests. The entire Church – all of us: bishops, clergy, monastics, and laity – must continue their sacred mission. It is our shared responsibility, through word and deed, through prayer and fulfillment of the commandments, to labor each day so that the faith of Christ may, as in the times of the apostles, be spread and strengthened.” From the homily of Metropolitan Alexander.