In the capital of Kazakhstan, celebrations were held to mark the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the Astana Diocese

September 29, 2024 – 14th Sunday after Pentecost, following the Exaltation; the day commemorating the Great Martyr Euphemia the All-Praised and the Martyr Ludmila, Duchess of Bohemia.

At the Assumption Cathedral in Astana, Kazakhstan’s capital, with the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia, celebrations were held in honor of the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the Astana and Almaty Diocese. The central event of the celebration was the arrival of the relics of Blessed Matrona of Moscow to the Metropolitan District. The night before, the reliquary with the holy relics was brought into the cathedral and placed in the center of the church for the prayerful veneration of the faithful.

On the day of the celebration, the Divine Liturgy was led by the Head of the Orthodox Church of Kazakhstan, Metropolitan Alexander of Astana and Kazakhstan, the Head of the Central Asian Metropolitan District, Metropolitan Vikenty of Tashkent and Uzbekistan, and the Patriarchal Exarch of All Belarus, Metropolitan Benjamin of Minsk and Zaslavl.

The permanent members of the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church were joined in concelebration by visiting archpastors: Metropolitan Kirill of Kazan and Tatarstan, Metropolitan Sergiy of Singapore and Southeast Asia, Metropolitan Pavel of Khanty-Mansiysk and Surgut, Metropolitan Ferapont of Kostroma and Nerekhta, Metropolitan Evgeny of Yekaterinburg and Verkhoturye, Archbishop Justinian of Elista and Kalmykia, Bishop Alexiy of Galich and Makaryev, and Bishop Fedor of Berdyansk and Primorsk.

From the Kazakh episcopate, the following archpastors also served: Archbishop Barnabas of Pavlodar and Ekibastuz, Archbishop Sebastian of Karaganda and Shakhtinsk, Archbishop Amphilochius of Ust-Kamenogorsk and Semipalatinsk, Archbishop Serapion of Kokshetau and Akmola, Archbishop Vladimir of Petropavlovsk and Bulayevo, Bishop Ignatius of Aktobe and Kyzylorda, Bishop Klavdian of Taldykorgan, Vicar of the Astana Diocese, Bishop Chrysant of Shymkent and Turkestan, Bishop Benjamin of Talgar, Vicar of the Astana Diocese, and Bishop Vianor of Uralsk and Atyrau.

Also serving with the Most Reverend Hierarchs were: the Dean of the Parishes of Almaty, Mitred Protopriest Valery Zakharov; the Dean of the Astana Church District, Archimandrite Sergiy (Karamyshev); the Rector of the Almaty Church of the Icon of the Mother of God "Joy of All Who Sorrow," Protopriest Evgeny Vorobyev; the assistant to Metropolitan Alexander at the Representation of the Metropolitan District of Kazakhstan in Moscow, Doctor of Medical Sciences, Professor Igumen Agafangel (Gagua); the head of the Public Relations Department of the Karaganda Diocese, Hieromonk Moses (Patrikeev); the personal secretary of Archbishop Justinian of Elista, Protopriest Evgeny Goncharenko; the Secretary of the Kostanay Diocese, Hieromonk Gennady (Burdyuzha); the Secretary of the Tatarstan Metropolia, Hieromonk Kirill (Korytko); the Abbot of the Monastery of St. Demetrius, Metropolitan of Rostov, in Khanty-Mansiysk, Igumen Anthony (Kiripichev); clergy of the Astana Church District; and clerics who accompanied the guest archpastors. The deacons' rank was led by Protodeacon Nikolai Grinkevich.

Praying at the Liturgy were: Abbess Sebastiana (Plotnikova), Abbess of the Monastery of the Icon of the Mother of God "Seeking the Lost" in Astana, along with the nuns of the convent; Secretary of the Metropolitan District of Kazakhstan, Honored Artist of Russia, and member of the Patriarchal Council for the Development of Russian Church Singing, O.N. Ovchinnikov; the head of the public foundation "Apostle Fund," G.G. Sosnovsky; staff of the Astana Diocesan Administration, numerous parishioners, and pilgrims.

Guests of the celebration included: Apostolic Nuncio (Vatican Ambassador) to the Republic of Kazakhstan, Archbishop George Panamthundil; Honorary Archbishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Kazakhstan, Yuri Novgorodov; Deputy Chairman of the Mazhilis of the Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan, A.P. Rau; Deputy Chairman of the Senate of the Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan, O.V. Perepechina; Vice Minister of Information and Culture of the Republic of Kazakhstan, K.Zh. Iskakov; Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Belarus, P.V. Utyupin; Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Kyrgyz Republic, D.S. Djushekeev; Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Cuba, O.S. Leon; Deputy Akim of the city of Astana, E.B. Baiken; Director of the Institute of Diplomacy at the Academy of Public Administration under the President of Kazakhstan, A.Yu. Volkov; Chairman of the Board of the N. Nazarbayev Center for the Development of Interfaith and Intercivilizational Dialogue, B.S. Sarsenbayev; as well as representatives of public and ethnocultural associations.

The choir of the Assumption Cathedral, led by Olga Varentsova, performed the liturgical hymns. 

After the Communion verse, Priest Georgy Rublinsky read the address of Metropolitan Alexander of Astana and Kazakhstan on the occasion of the arrival of the relics of Blessed Matrona of Moscow in Kazakhstan. A large number of the faithful partook of the Holy Mysteries of Christ.

At the conclusion of the Liturgy, the faithful venerated the Precious Cross of the Lord and honored Blessed Matrona in front of the reliquary containing her holy relics. Protodeacon Nikolai Grinkevich proclaimed a "Many Years" (Mnogaya Leta) for His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia; for the Head and bishops of the Metropolitan District of Kazakhstan; the visiting archpastors; and for the President, authorities, military, and all the people of Kazakhstan.

At the conclusion of the Liturgy, Metropolitan Vincent of Tashkent and Uzbekistan read a greeting from His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia on the occasion of the 35th anniversary of Metropolitan Alexander of Astana and Kazakhstan’s archpastoral ministry. Metropolitan Vincent also offered well-wishes to the Head of the Orthodox Church of Kazakhstan on behalf of the archpastors, clergy, monastics, and laity of the Central Asian Metropolitan District.

The Vicar of the Astana Diocese, Bishop Klavdian of Taldykorgan, congratulated Metropolitan Alexander on behalf of the Synod of the Orthodox Church of Kazakhstan and presented him with an episcopal staff as a commemorative gift, a replica of the staff that belonged to Metropolitan Joseph (Chernov), a confessor of the faith and ascetic of piety in the 20th century.

In his response, the Head of the Orthodox Church of Kazakhstan warmly thanked the hierarchs, clergy, monastics, parishioners, and pilgrims for their kind words and well-wishes, and asked for their fervent prayers for God’s assistance in his continued service to the Church of Christ on Kazakh soil.

Metropolitan Alexander also congratulated the participants in the Liturgy on the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the Astana and Almaty Diocese and the arrival in Kazakhstan of the relics of Blessed Matrona of Moscow, who is highly venerated by Orthodox believers. He then addressed the faithful with a word of edification.

The Orthodox television studio "Semirechye" (directed by Honored Cultural Worker V. Posadneva, with cameraman A. Schmidt) filmed the service, and A. Shcheglov handled the photography.

After the Liturgy, the veneration of the relics of Blessed Matrona continued at the Assumption Cathedral, with the faithful offering their prayers.

Later that day, Metropolitan Alexander met with the archpastors who had come for the 25th anniversary celebration of the establishment of the Astana Diocese. The meeting took place at the Cyril and Methodius Spiritual and Cultural Center of the Orthodox Church of Kazakhstan, where he also received representatives of the Republic’s government, leaders of traditional faiths, and heads of diplomatic missions.