Metropolitan Alexander of Astana and Kazakhstan Concludes His Pilgrimage to the Holy Sites of the Vyatka Land

June 7, 2026. The pilgrimage of Metropolitan Alexander of Astana and Kazakhstan to the holy sites of the Vyatka land has concluded. The hierarch visited the Vyatka Metropolitanate with the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus’ and presided over the celebrations dedicated to the appearance of the Velikoretsk Icon of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker.

Accompanying the Head of the Orthodox Church of Kazakhstan on the pilgrimage were: O.N. Ovchinnikov, Secretary of the Metropolitan District, Honored Worker of Kazakhstan and Russia, member of the Patriarchal Council for the Development of Russian Church Singing; assistants to the Metropolitan, P.V. Sokolov and I.E. Yatsenko.

On the final day of his stay in his native land, Metropolitan Alexander offered prayers in two churches closely connected with his spiritual formation during his childhood and youth – Holy Trinity Church in the village of Volkovo, Slobodskoy District, and Holy Trinity Church in the village of Bystritsa, Orichevsky District.

At Holy Trinity Church in the village of Volkovo, the hierarch celebrated the Divine Liturgy.

At Holy Trinity Church in the village of Bystritsa – one of the few churches that remained open during the years of godless persecution – Metropolitan Alexander was welcomed by the rector, Archpriest Nikolai Fedko. The hierarch venerated the revered icons of the church and offered prayers for the repose of all departed clergy and parishioners. The history of the church is inseparably connected with the lives of priests who suffered for the faith of Christ. Parish priests of the Bystritsa church – Nikolai Yuferev, Alexander Dyurbaum, and Izmail Rozhdestvensky – were sentenced by the godless authorities to capital punishment and executed in the 1930s. In the late 1870s and early 1880s, Hieromartyr Mikhail Tikhonitsky served at Holy Trinity Church in the village.

The rector informed the hierarch about parish life and the ongoing restoration and repair works.

In memory of the visit, Metropolitan Alexander presented the church with an icon of the Holy Prophet Elijah. The hierarch awarded Archpriest Nikolai the high distinction of the Metropolitan District – the Order “Еңбек Үшін” (“For Labors”).