In the Prince Vladimir Church of Almaty, a Cossack Oath Ceremony and a Festival of Traditional Cossack Culture Took Place

August 10, 2025. Almaty. On Sunday, after the Divine Liturgy in the Vladimir Church of Almaty, a ceremony of young Cossacks taking the oath – verstanie – and a festival of traditional Cossack culture were held.

The celebration was attended by: Ataman of the Republican Public Association “Union of the Cossacks of Semirechye” (SCS), chairman of the Almaty City Branch of the Public Association “Association of Russian, Slavic and Cossack Organizations of Kazakhstan”, member of the Assembly of the People of Kazakhstan V.S. Shikhotov; chairman of the Council of Elders of SCS V.R. Popov; deputy chairman of the Council of Elders of SCS V.V. Tanyshev; members of the Council of Elders – V.K. Izyumnikov, A.D. Chekmenyov, A.V. Grishchenko, M.V. Molchanov, A.V. Shelekhov; Ataman of the Almaty Branch of SCS, member of the Assembly of the People of Kazakhstan S.V. Shikhotov; Ataman of the Almaty Region Branch of SCS D.S. Chesnov, and representatives of the Assembly of the People of Kazakhstan in Almaty.

Before taking the oath, the Cossacks prayed at the Liturgy, went to confession, and received the Holy Mysteries of Christ.

With the blessing of Metropolitan Alexander of Astana and Kazakhstan, the young men were led to the oath by Deputy Chairman of the Commission on Work with the Cossacks of the Orthodox Church of Kazakhstan, Priest Evgeny Kozlov, and the Ataman of the Union of the Cossacks of Semirechye V.S. Shikhotov. The youths took an oath of loyalty to the Orthodox Faith, to the Fatherland, and to the Cossacks. The young Cossacks kissed the Gospel and the Cross, as well as the Cossack banner, and the priest sprinkled them with holy water.

Afterwards, Fr. Evgeny addressed those gathered with a pastoral exhortation, speaking about the significance of the Cossack movement in the revival of Orthodox spiritual culture and the importance of preserving Cossack traditions. The pastor wished the new recruits strong health and success in serving God, the Church, and the Fatherland. The Semirechye Cossacks and Cossack women received a blessing to study at the Razumovsky Moscow State University of Technologies and Management (First Cossack University) and parting words from the Council of Elders.

The Semirechye Cossacks welcomed seven new members: K.A. Grebenshchikov, S.V. Dubuk, A.I. Krivko, V.N. Mironchik, V.V. Karpov, P.A. Gusev, and S.V. Sukhorukov.

At the conclusion of the ceremony, a Cossack culture festival was held. Members of the Union of the Cossacks of Semirechye performed the Cossack lezginka dance and demonstrated elements of traditional weapon wielding. Afterwards, folk ensembles from Southern Kazakhstan presented a festive concert.

The event concluded with the exhibition “Cossacks in the Service of the Fatherland.”