Winners of the Online Quiz “Spiritual Spring” Announced

March 16, 2025. With the blessing of Metropolitan Alexander of Astana and Kazakhstan, the online quiz “Spiritual Spring”, dedicated to Great Lent, was held.

The event was organized by the Educational Department of the Astana Diocese and brought together teams from Sunday schools, Orthodox youth movements, and clubs from Kazakhstan, Russia, and Latvia. In total, 18 teams participated in the intellectual competition: six representing youth clubs and twelve from Sunday and general education schools.

The quiz included questions on the specifics of the liturgical practices of the Holy Forty Days and the foundations of Orthodox culture. Additionally, some questions covered topics in astronautics, aviation, and astronomy (in connection with the upcoming Cosmonautics Day), as well as ornithology—a branch of zoology studying birds, their morphology, anatomy, behavior, ecology, origin, geographical distribution, and classification (in observance of International Bird Day on April 1).

The competition was held in two categories: Sunday schools and youth clubs.

Winners and Prize-Winners of the Orthodox Culture Knowledge Contest

Sunday Schools Category

I Place:

• “My Joy” (Church of St. Seraphim of Sarov, Chapayevo, Almaty Region, Kazakhstan)
• “Rays” (St. Nicholas Church, Tonshaevo, Nizhny Novgorod Region, Russia)
• “Seeds of Faith” (Combined team of Sunday schools, Kerch, Republic of Crimea)
• “Blagovest” (Annunciation Cathedral, Pavlodar, Kazakhstan)
• “Faith, Hope, Love” (Iveron-St. Seraphim Cathedral, Ekibastuz, Kazakhstan)
• “Joy of Faith” (Church of Sts. Sebastian and Magdalene, Petropavlovsk, Kazakhstan)

II Place:

• “New Generation” (Ascension Cathedral, Petropavlovsk, Kazakhstan)
• “Peresvet” (Combined team, Bryansk, Russia)
• “Little Radonezh” (Church of All Saints, Petropavlovsk, Kazakhstan)

III Place:

• “Radonezh” (Church of All Saints, Petropavlovsk, Kazakhstan)
• “Forget-Me-Nots” (Iveron Church, Burundai, Almaty Region, Kazakhstan)
• “Youths” (Nativity of the Theotokos Cathedral, Rezekne, Latvia)

Youth Clubs Category

I Place:

• “Scythian” (Iveron-St. Seraphim Cathedral, Ekibastuz, Kazakhstan)
• “Galilee” (Church of Blessed Xenia of St. Petersburg, Konaev, Kazakhstan)
• “Byzantium” (Cathedral of Christ the Savior, Almaty, Kazakhstan)

II Place:

• “Agape” (Church of the Archangel Michael, Pavlodar, Kazakhstan)
• “Orthodox Youth of Kerch” (Combined team, Kerch, Russia)

III Place:

• “East-Express” (Church of St. Vladimir, Chemolgan, Almaty Region, Kazakhstan)

The questions and answers from the quiz are available on the website of the Orthodox Internet Carousel. The next mini online quiz, “Countries and Peoples: The Korean Peninsula”, is scheduled for April 6, 2025.