On the Feast of the Miraculous Feodorovskaya Icon of the Mother of God, Metropolitan Alexander Celebrated the Liturgy at the Ascension Cathedral in Almaty

August 29, 2024 — The Afterfeast of the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos, the commemoration of the transfer of the Icon Not Made by Hands of Our Lord Jesus Christ from Edessa to Constantinople, and the feast day of the appearance of the great Orthodox relic, the Feodorovskaya Icon of the Mother of God. Metropolitan Alexander of Astana and Kazakhstan led the Divine Liturgy at the Ascension Cathedral in Almaty, where a "measure-to-measure" replica of the miraculous icon is kept.

Serving with the Head of the Orthodox Church of Kazakhstan were Bishop Gennady of Kaskelen, Chancellor of the Orthodox Church of Kazakhstan; Bishop Klavdian of Taldykorgan, Vicar of the Astana Diocese; Bishop Veniamin of Talgar, Vicar of the Astana Diocese; Protopriest Valery Zakharov, Dean of the Churches of Almaty and Rector of St. Nicholas Cathedral; Protopriest Yevgeny Vorobyev, Rector of the Church of the Icon of the Mother of God "Joy of All Who Sorrow" in Almaty; Protopriest Alexander Suvorov, Keykeeper of the Ascension Cathedral and Head of the Metropolitan District's Public Relations Department; Protopriest Yevgeny Ivanov, Acting Rector of Almaty Theological Seminary and Head of the Metropolitan District's Information and Publishing Department; Protopriest Alexander Gaychenya, Keykeeper of the Nativity of Christ Cathedral; Protopriest Alexander Zyryanov, Dean of the Ili Church District; Protopriest Valery Shavrin, Rector of the Epiphany Church; Protopriest Ioann Lopatin, Rector of the Paraskeva Church; Protopriest Nikolai Tkachenko, Rector of the Church of the Epiphany of the Lord in Malovodnoe; Protopriest Kirill Shklyar, Keykeeper of the Peter and Paul Church; Hieromonk Prokhor (Yendovitsky), Head of the Personal Secretariat of the Metropolitan; Priest Georgy Sidorov, Head of the Administrative Secretariat of the Head of the Metropolitan District; Rectors and clergy of the Almaty Diocese; the diaconate was led by Protodeacon Nikolai Grinkevich.

Among those praying at the service were Marina Simakova, Head of the Representative Office of Rossotrudnichestvo in the Republic of Kazakhstan; Tatiana Zubkova, Head of the Educational Projects Department of Rossotrudnichestvo; leaders, spiritual mentors, teachers, and students of the diocesan Sunday schools; and parishioners of the main church of the southern capital.

The hymns were performed by the choir of the Metropolitan District (conducted by Honored Artist of Russia O.N. Ovchinnikov, choir master V. Dudareva) and the choir of the Ascension Cathedral (conducted by N. Zubrech).

During the service, special commemorations were made for His Holiness Patriarch Filaret, Nun Martha, and Tsar Mikhail Feodorovich, who received a blessing for his reign from the Feodorovskaya Icon of the Mother of God; the ever-memorable Archbishop Cassian (Yaroslavsky) of Kostroma and Galich and other archpastors of Kostroma, custodians of the Feodorovskaya image.

The sermon following the communion verse was delivered by Protopriest Yevgeny Ivanov.

The service concluded with a hymn of praise to the Most Holy Theotokos before the image of the Shroud of the Queen of Heaven and the Feodorovskaya icon, after which Metropolitan Alexander warmly congratulated the archpastors, clergy, monastics, and laity on the special celebrations dedicated to the Mother of God. In his sermon, Metropolitan Alexander spoke to those gathered about the history of the discovery of the Feodorovskaya Icon of the Mother of God, the grace-filled help, and the miracles revealed through this image.

Representatives of the Semirechye Cossack Union, led by Ataman V.S. Shikhotov, a member of the Assembly of the People of Kazakhstan, actively participated in ensuring order and security.

The filming of the metropolitan service was carried out by the television studio of the Kazakhstan Metropolitan District "Semirechye" (director — Honored Worker of Culture V.L. Posadneva, operator A. Schmidt); photo documentation was done by A. Shcheglov, an employee of the Information Department.

After the service, the Head of the Metropolitan District congratulated Protopriest Alexander Zyryanov, Dean of the Ili Church District, on the 30th anniversary of his priestly ordination, and Hieromonk Alexy (Cherevtsov) on his anniversary of service in the holy rank. Metropolitan Alexander presented the clergy with holy prosphora, wishing them God's mercy, spiritual and physical health, and zealous service to the Church of Christ.

"The miraculous Feodorovskaya Icon of the Queen of Heaven is one of the oldest in the Orthodox Church. Before this image of the Blessed Lady, the founders of Holy Rus' prayed, hierarchs and sovereigns knelt, and venerable and righteous ones sought heavenly intercession. The Feodorovskaya Icon of the Mother of God was especially revered by the confessor Nicholas, Metropolitan of Alma-Ata, the elder-hierarch Metropolitan Joseph (Chernov), the confessor Sebastian of Karaganda, and many sufferers for Christ who shone in the Kazakh land in the 20th century.  

This shrine, having passed through many hardships and trials together with our people, became a visible sign of God's help to all who come to the Lord and His Most Pure Mother with faith. Looking with hope at the face of the Queen of Heaven, shining with spiritual beauty, preserved by the power of God for many centuries, we believe and confess that 'She is the glory of those on earth, the joy of those in Heaven, the adornment of all creation' (St. Gregory Palamas). From the Feodorovskaya image of the Queen of Heaven, those suffering from severe ailments receive healing, the grieving receive consolation, and those in straitened circumstances receive help. This shrine is revered by the Orthodox people as a protector of family well-being, childbirth, and child-rearing. Today, Orthodox people ask the Mother of God to incline the mercy of Her Son and God to the entire Russian Orthodox Church, to bless the countries, cities, and villages where people who believe in Christ live. If our prayer is sincere and heartfelt, if our hope is certain, there will be no obstacles to the Lord pouring out the same grace upon us that He poured out on our pious ancestors, who raised their heartfelt prayers before the Feodorovskaya image of His Most Pure Mother. The generous gifts poured out upon us through the intercession of the Sovereign Lady urge us to amend our lives according to the Gospel. Our gratitude to the Queen of Heaven should be expressed not only in words but also in concrete actions. Saint and Doctor Luke, Archbishop of Crimea, says about this: 'While glorifying the Most Holy Theotokos, let us remember that we should not only praise Her but also keep our hearts from what is contrary to Her heart, from what is contrary to Her holiness.' The Mother of God is called more honorable than the Cherubim and more glorious beyond compare than the Seraphim, but despite all Her greatness, She is for us a good example of virtues. 'The example of the holiness of the Most Holy Virgin is given to us by the Gospel not only for our reverence and admiration but also for our edification and imitation,' writes the wise hierarch Saint Philaret of Moscow. From the Holy Scriptures, we see such qualities of the Mother of God as humility, modesty, and obedience to the will of God. Therefore, asking the Most Holy Theotokos for everything we need in our earthly life, let us not forget to ask for the most important thing, the one thing needed (see Luke 10:41-42) — for the heavenly gifts necessary for the salvation of the soul. We need spiritual strength and vigor to fulfill the commandments. We all acutely need a merciful heart that can selflessly, sacrificially love, forgive, sympathize, and understand." From the sermon of Metropolitan Alexander.