On August 6, 2024, in the city of Belynichi, Belarus, Metropolitan Alexander of Astana and Kazakhstan, along with members of the delegation of the Metropolitan District of Kazakhstan, visited the church in honor of the miraculous Belynichi Icon of the Mother of God.
The guests were accompanied by the Patriarchal Exarch of All Belarus, Metropolitan Benjamin of Minsk and Zaslavl, and Bishop Seraphim of Bobruisk and Bykhov.
Belynichi is the place of spiritual feats of the ever-memorable Metropolitan Joseph (Chernov) of Almaty and Kazakhstan—a confessor of the faith and ascetic of piety. In 1910, the future saint was received into the Belynichi Monastery of the Nativity of the Mother of God, where he served in various obediences for some time. The hierarch particularly revered the Belynichi Icon of the Mother of God, which sanctified his childhood and youth. The icon that belonged to Metropolitan Joseph is currently kept in the collections of the house-museum of the elder-saint, which is planned to open in Almaty in 2025, marking the 50th anniversary of the hierarch's repose in the Lord.
At the gates of the church, the guests were welcomed by the head of the Belynichi District Executive Committee, O.V. Pristromskaya. On the church grounds, Olga Vasilyevna gave a brief tour of the exhibition, which tells the history of Orthodoxy in the Belynichi land, local attractions, and notable figures.
After this, Metropolitan Alexander of Astana and Kazakhstan and Metropolitan Benjamin of Minsk and Zaslavl performed a litany before the miraculous Belynichi Icon of the Mother of God. The head of the Metropolitan District of Kazakhstan sprinkled the faithful with holy water and gave his blessing to everyone.
The archpastor thanked Metropolitan Benjamin for the hospitality extended to the Kazakhstani delegation and expressed sincere joy in being in the city of Belynichi, where the ever-memorable Metropolitan Joseph (Chernov), revered by millions around the world, lived and prayed.
With the blessing of Metropolitan Alexander, two copies of the "Belynichi" Icon of the Mother of God were brought from Kazakhstan and laid upon the miraculous original. One of the icons, upon the pilgrims' return to Almaty, will be placed on the tomb of Metropolitan Joseph in the Sophia Cathedral of the Iveron-Seraphim Women's Monastery in the Southern capital.
As a memento of visiting the great holy relic, the rector of the church, Protopriest Sergey Maslov, presented Metropolitan Alexander and Archbishop Amphilochius with icons of the Mother of God, as well as books containing the akathist to the miraculous image and the history of Orthodoxy in the city of Belynichi.
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