Address: 050033, Almaty, Tashkent St., 493

Phone: (+7 727) 270-82-77, 381-74-90

Fax: (+7 727) 381-74-90

Historical Background

At the beginning of 1993, Archbishop Alexy of Almaty and Semipalatinsk (now Metropolitan of Tula and Efremov) blessed the organization of a new church community at the request of the Orthodox residents of the Akbulak settlement.

Father Alexander Osokin (now Bishop Sebastian of Karaganda and Shakhtinsk) was appointed rector of the parish.

Due to the lack of funds for the construction of a cathedral, it was decided to build a small chapel.

Elena Sokolinskaya (now Nun Evgenia) collected signatures, visited various authorities, gathered tools from the settlement, and responded to any work that was needed.

Construction of the chapel began in May 1993. During the Petrov Fast, the foundation was laid, and the walls were erected. By the end of summer, the main structure of the chapel was completed.

On August 19, 1993, the Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord, the first Divine Liturgy was celebrated, and starting in September, services were held in the chapel on Sundays and feast days.

On Easter, May 1, 1994, Archbishop Alexy celebrated the Divine Liturgy in the chapel.

Soon, the number of parishioners grew, the clergy expanded, and the main composition of the choir was formed. A brotherhood refectory and a bell tower were built next to the chapel, and preparations began for the construction of the main church.

On June 16, 1995, His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia, together with Archbishop Alexy, laid the foundation stone for the future Cathedral of the Nativity of Christ and consecrated the Memorial Cross.

At the beginning of 1997, the first floor of the church building was erected.

On Easter, April 27, the first Divine Liturgy was celebrated.

On June 16, 1997, the Day of the Holy Spirit, exactly two years after the foundation laying by His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II, Archbishop Alexy consecrated the central altar of the lower chapel in honor of the Holy Life-Giving Trinity.

The creation of the iconostasis was carried out by Father Herman Sergeyev and his wife Natalia. By mid-1999, the icons for the lower church's iconostasis were painted, and the festive row was completed by local artist Alexander Cherepanov.

On June 29, 1999, a dome weighing over 15 tons was installed on the church. On this day, a large crowd gathered, and 12 prayer services were held by the Almaty clergy.

In September 1999, a Sunday school and catechetical courses for adults were opened at the church, along with a library of Orthodox spiritual literature. An icon painting school was also established.

On Christmas 2000, the first Divine Liturgy was celebrated on the second floor.

On June 4, 2000, Archbishop Alexy consecrated the central altar of the upper church in honor of the Nativity of Christ.

In 2003, a baptismal font for full immersion was installed in the small church, the walls were decorated with frescoes, and a permanent iconostasis was set up.

In 2007, the construction of a wooden chapel began and was completed in 2011.

The parish operates the "Sobriety" society.
On the church grounds, there is a church in the name of Nina, Enlightener of Georgia. Its construction began in 2007 with the blessing of Metropolitan Methodius (Nemtsov) (now Metropolitan of Perm and Kungur). It is made of Angara pine and larch, delivered from the Irkutsk region of the Russian Federation. The great consecration was performed by the vicar of the Astana diocese, Bishop Nektary of Taldykorgan, on February 22, 2016.

Architectural Features

On the parish territory, there is a large church (with two chapels, dimensions: 24x36 meters, height – 50 meters) and a small baptismal church (made of monolithic reinforced concrete).

Non-Liturgical Church Facilities

Apart from the church building, the parish grounds include a water blessing chapel, entrance group, administrative-residential building, two residential houses, refectory building, icon shop, library, and ramp.