Metropolitan Alexander of Astana and Kazakhstan blessed the coming 2025 with a night Liturgy in the Ascension Cathedral of Almaty

January 1, 2025 is the day of remembrance of the holy martyr Boniface of Tarsus and the Monk Elijah of Murom; civil new year.

Metropolitan Alexander of Astana and Kazakhstan celebrated the Divine Liturgy in the Ascension Cathedral of Almaty on the night of December 31, 2024 to January 1, 2025.

The head of the Kazakhstan Metropolitan District was assisted by: vicars of the Astana diocese - Administrator of the Kazakhstan Metropolitan District Bishop Gennady of Kaskelen, Bishop Claudian of Taldykorgan and Bishop Veniamin of Talgar; dean of the parishes of Almaty, rector of the Nikolsky Cathedral Archpriest Valery Zakharov; Rector of the Church of the Icon of the Mother of God "Joy of All Who Sorrow" in the city of Alma-Ata Archpriest Evgeny Vorobyov, Key keeper of the Ascension Cathedral, Head of the Public Relations Department of the Metropolitan District Archpriest Alexander Suvorov, Acting Rector of the Alma-Ata Theological Seminary, Head of the Information and Publishing Department of the Metropolitan District Archpriest Evgeny Ivanov; Rector of the Epiphany Church Archpriest Valery Shavrin, Dean of the Ili Church District Archpriest Alexander Zyryanov, Rector of the Nativity of the Mother of God Church in the Akzhar microdistrict Hieromonk Alexy (Cherevtsov), cleric of the Ascension Cathedral Hieromonk Roman (Chistyakov), head of the personal secretariat of the Metropolitan Hieromonk Prokhor (Endovitsky), Hieromonk Cherubim (Levin), cleric of the Church of St. John the Theologian in the Southern Capital Hieromonk Gennady (Solovyov), key keeper of the Vladimir Church Hieromonk Sergiy (Vnukovsky), head of the administrative secretariat of the Head of the Metropolitan District Priest Georgy Sidorov; key keeper of the Kazan Cathedral in Almaty Priest Georgy Rublinsky; Protodeacon Nikolai Grinkevich, head of the Metropolitan's protocol service Protodeacon Roman Golovin, Protodeacon Vladimir Syrovatsky, Deacon John Churkin, Hierodeacon Sophonia (Mazurenko), Deacon John Zhuchkov, Deacon Georgy Tkachenko.

In the main church of the Southern capital, an icon with a particle of the relics of the martyr Boniface was kept for prayerful worship and spiritual consolation of believers.

The chants were performed by the male choir of the Almaty diocese under the direction of Deacon Alexander Pivnya.

The litany included special petitions for the beginning of the New Year, for the increase of love and the eradication of hatred and all malice, for the unity of Holy Orthodoxy.
According to the communion verse, Priest Georgy Sidorov read out the address of the Head of the Orthodox Church of Kazakhstan before the New Year.

At the end of the Liturgy, Metropolitan Alexander read a prayer for the New Year before the icon with the relics of the martyr Boniface: "Master Lord our God, Source of life and immortality, Creator of all creation visible and invisible, who has placed times and years in His power."

The choir performed the hymn "We Praise You, God," authored by Saint Ambrose of Mediolan.

The Primate of the Orthodox Church of Kazakhstan congratulated the Most Reverend Archpastors, clergy and believers on entering the period of the pre-feast of the Nativity of Christ and the coming New Year and addressed the congregation with a sermon.

"Seeing off the outgoing year, we thank the Creator "for all the blessings that have been upon us, both known and unknown." Our gratitude to God should also extend to the sad circumstances of our lives, difficulties and hardships. “For no chastening for the present seems to be joyful, but painful,” the Apostle Paul tells us. “however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it” (Heb. 12:11). The Lord, who loves us, desiring our salvation, sometimes reminded us of our Christian vows through illnesses and sorrows, warned us against falls and awakened us from sinful sleep. “For just as it is inappropriate not to thank doctors for the healing of the body when they give us bitter and unpleasant medicines, so it is also inappropriate to remain ungrateful to God for what seems joyless to us, not realizing that everything happens according to His providence and for our benefit,” teaches us the Venerable Anthony the Great. For a Christian, each new stage of time is a gift from God, a new mercy and goodness of the Creator, who loves the world and cares for it. The coming year is new opportunities sent to us from Above to increase our knowledge and experience, to discover and increase the talents and gifts given by God. And, most importantly, these are new opportunities to comprehend the love of the Lord, to serve God and people, to embody the commandments of Christ in our lives.

Entering the New Year, we cherish the Christian hope that it will bring people new mercy from God. We express this hope in good wishes, in mutual greetings: Happy New Year, happy new fortune!

For a believer, true happiness is becoming like God, whose image and likeness we bear. The Lord Himself gave us such an opportunity with His coming, the Nativity of the Virgin Mary - the triumph of peace and God's love, which we are preparing to celebrate these days.
"The Son of God became the son of man so that man could become the son of God," says Saint Irenaeus of Lyons. By participating in the sacraments of the Church, sincerely praying, studying the Holy Scriptures, selflessly performing deeds of love and mercy, we already here on earth unite with God and find true happiness, the true joy of communion with God, which, according to the words of the Savior, "no one can take away your joy” (John 16:22).

I call upon all of you, dear brothers and sisters, to see out the outgoing year and welcome the New Year “with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord” (Col. 3:16). Lord, bless the crown of the year of Your goodness!” From the sermon of Metropolitan Alexander.