August 11, 2026 – commemoration day of the heavenly patrons of Alma-Ata and all Kazakhstan – the Venerable Martyrs Seraphim and Feognost of Aksai
Metropolitan Alexander of Astana and Kazakhstan celebrated the Divine Liturgy at the Seraphim-Feognost Men’s Hermitage in the Aksai Gorge – the place of the monastic labors and martyrdom of the sufferers for Christ.
Before the beginning of the service, the Head of the Metropolitan District visited the monastery church dedicated to the Venerable Martyrs Seraphim and Feognost, where he consecrated the newly crafted reliquary for the relics of the saints of God. The new tomb was crafted from natural oak and adorned with precious metals at the diocesan woodworking workshop named after the Great Martyr Theodore Stratelates, under the direction of L.K. Ryabov, according to designs by Priest Georgy Sidorov, Head of the Administrative Secretariat of the Head of the Metropolitan District.
Following the rite of consecration, the relics of the Aksai martyrs were placed in the newly crafted reliquary, after which the solemn divine service began.
At the Liturgy, celebrated at the burial place of the Aksai martyrs, the Head of the Orthodox Church of Kazakhstan was concelebrated by: Bishop Klavdian of Taldykorgan and Bishop Veniamin of Talgar, Vicars of the Astana Diocese; Archimandrite Ioann (Sazonov), Spiritual Father of the Alma-Ata Diocese; Hegumen Trifon (Pechkovsky), Abbot of the Seraphim-Feognost Monastery; Hegumen Nazary (Markov), Abbot of the Savior-Silouan Hermitage in Issyk; Archpriest Alexander Suvorov, Sacristan of the Ascension Cathedral and Head of the Public Relations Department of the Metropolitan District; Archpriest Alexander Zyryanov, Dean of the Ili Church District; Archpriest Georgy Kharlov, Rector of the Church of St. John the Baptist in the settlement of Guldala; Archpriest Alexander Ageyev, Rector of St. Seraphim Church in the settlement of Chapayevo; Hieromonk Pimen (Tkachenko), Rector of St. Xenia Parish in the city of Konaev; Archpriest Valery Shavrin, Rector of the Theophany Church; Hieromonk Dimitry (Baidek), Secretary to the Head of the Metropolitan District; Archpriest Alexander Sokolov; Hegumen Alexy (Nesmeyev); Hieromonk Gennady (Burdyuzha), Acting Secretary of the Kostanay Diocese; Hieromonk Prokhor (Endovitsky), Head of the Metropolitan’s Secretariat; Priest Georgy Sidorov, Head of the Administrative Secretariat of the Head of the Metropolitan District; Priest Georgy Rublinsky, Rector of the Kazan Cathedral in Alma-Ata; Priest Kirill Freigang, Acting Dean of the Talgar Church District and Rector of St. Nicholas Church in Talgar; Priest Maxim Idrisov; Hieromonk Paisiy (Tishenkov); Hieromonk Evlogy (Shcherbak); Protodeacon Roman Golovin, Head of the Metropolitan’s Protocol Service; Hierodeacon Afanasy (Kozel); Deacon Rustik Yakupov; Deacon Georgy Tkachenko
Despite the difficulty of ascending to the skete, situated in the Trans-Ili Alatau Mountains at an altitude of 1,850 meters above sea level, numerous pilgrims gathered for the celebrations marking this spiritually significant anniversary and the monastery’s patronal feast.
Praying at the service were: staff members of the Alma-Ata Diocesan Administration; members of the Metropolitan District’s youth clubs; believing representatives of Kazakhstan’s mass media and creative intelligentsia; Cossacks; pilgrims from the dioceses of Kazakhstan, as well as pilgrims from Russia, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan.
The liturgical hymns were performed by the men’s choir of the Alma-Ata Diocese under the direction of Deacon Alexander Piven.
During the litany for the departed, special prayers were offered for the departed hierarchs and clergy of Kazakhstan and for all those “innocently tortured and slain during the years of godless persecution, and those who died from hunger, cold, wounds, illnesses and hard labor”; Orthodox Christians innocently murdered in the Aksai Gorge in 2012 were also commemorated.
After the Communion verse, Priest Georgy Sidorov read the message of Metropolitan Alexander of Astana and Kazakhstan on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the uncovering of the relics of the Hieromartyrs Seraphim and Feognost of Alma-Ata and the 30th anniversary of the revival of the Aksai Hermitage.
At the conclusion of the Liturgy, a glorification of the Aksai sufferers for Christ was performed – the clergy, choir and faithful sang the troparion, kontakion and magnification to the saints.
The Head of the Metropolitan District warmly congratulated the hierarchs, the abbot of the hermitage, the concelebrating clergy, monastics, parishioners and pilgrims on the 25th anniversary of the uncovering of the relics of the Hieromartyrs Seraphim and Feognost of Alma-Ata and the 30th anniversary of the revival of the Aksai Hermitage.
Following the service, Vladyka Metropolitan delivered a sermon on the meaning of Christian martyrdom and called upon the faithful not to abandon the tradition of pilgrimage to the Aksai Hermitage, but to draw ever more Orthodox Christians to this God-pleasing endeavor.
Video coverage of the Metropolitan’s service was provided by the Semirechye television studio of the Kazakhstan Metropolitan District (Director – Honored Worker of Culture V.L. Posadneva); photographs were taken by A. Khalin, staff member of the Information Department.
His Eminence sprinkled the faithful with holy water.
Booklets containing Metropolitan Alexander’s homily on the Venerable Martyrs Seraphim and Feognost were distributed to all the faithful.
The celebrations concluded with a common meal prepared by the brethren and volunteers for the assembled pilgrims, clergy and guests of the monastery.
“Three decades ago, by the mercy of Christ the Chief Shepherd, the Aksai Monastery, established through the labors of the Hieromartyrs, was granted a second life. The uncovering of the precious relics of the sufferers for the faith, Hieromonks Seraphim and Feognost, became a sign of God’s special favor toward the monastics and all the Orthodox faithful. Since that time, this great sacred treasure has remained in the monastery they founded, bestowing manifold gifts of grace upon the faithful. It is our sacred duty to cherish the memory of the Aksai ascetics, who through their labors spread the light of the Gospel and gave their lives for Christ. It is not they who need us, our praises and prayers, but we who need their daily help and support. Today, everyone who undertakes the difficult pilgrimage ascent to the mountain skete, to an altitude of almost two thousand meters, in order to prayerfully glorify the venerable sufferers, fulfills the apostolic commandment and bears witness to his own determination to follow their example – to remain faithful to the Lord Jesus Christ and His Holy Church. By learning about the lives of the New Martyrs and drawing inspiration from their feat and courage, not only we and our contemporaries, but also our descendants will be able to find true spiritual and moral guidance, to find God, Wondrous in His saints (Ps. 67:36), and to learn to accept and fulfill His will, always good and perfect (Rom. 12:2). Through the prayers of the Hieromartyrs whom we honor today, may Christ our true God grant us all His great and abundant mercy and bless the land of Kazakhstan and all countries and peoples with peace.” From the sermon of Metropolitan Alexander
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