
In Alma-Ata, they prayerfully celebrated the memory of the city's heavenly patrons - the holy martyrs of Nikolay Kuchugur - priests Stefan, Alexander and Philip
- 16.01.2025, 13:42
- Новости на английском языке

January 16, 2025 - the pre-feast of the Epiphany; the day of remembrance of the heavenly patrons of Alma-Ata, the holy martyrs of Nikolay Kuchugur - priests Stefan, Alexander and Philip (postponed celebration from January 17).
Metropolitan Alexander of Astana and Kazakhstan celebrated the Divine Liturgy in the St. Nicholas Cathedral of the Southern capital, where the holy martyrs, archpriests Alexander Skalsky, Stefan Ponomarev and Philip Grigoriev served their priestly service in the 20-30s of the twentieth century.
The Primate of the Orthodox Church of Kazakhstan was assisted by: vicars of the Astana diocese - Administrator of the Affairs of the Kazakhstan Metropolitan District Bishop Gennady of Kaskelen and Bishop Claudian of Taldykorgan; Dean of the churches of Almaty, rector of the Nikolsky Cathedral Archpriest Valery Zakharov, rector of the Almaty Church in honor of the icon of the Mother of God "Joy of All Who Sorrow" Archpriest Evgeny Vorobyov, secretary of the Kostanay Diocese Hieromonk Gennady (Burduzha), rector of the Paraskevskaya Church and the Alexander Nevsky Church Archpriest John Lopatin, key keeper of the Nativity of Christ Cathedral Archpriest Alexander Gaichenya, key keeper of the Nikolsky Cathedral Archpriest Igor Svetlichny, rector of the Epiphany Church Archpriest Valery Shavrin, rector of the Ksenievsky parish of the city of Konayev Hieromonk Pimen (Tkachenko), Archpriest Alexander Sokolov, rector of the Nativity of the Mother of God Church of the Akzhar microdistrict Hieromonk Alexy (Cherevtsov), Vice-Rector for Educational Work of the Alma-Ata Seminary Priest John Livinsky, Hieromonk Cherubim (Levin), Head of the Metropolitan's Personal Secretariat Hieromonk Prokhor (Endovitsky), Deputy Chairman of the Diocesan Commission for Social Service Priest Vyacheslav Isikov, Head of the Administrative Secretariat of the Head of the Metropolitan District Priest Georgy Sidorov; Cleric of the Nativity of Christ Church in Alma-Ata Priest Maxim Bely, Key Bearer of the Adriano-Natalievsky Church Priest John Konoplev, Key Bearer of the Kazan Cathedral in Alma-Ata Priest Georgy Rublinsky, Cleric of the Nativity of the Mother of God Church in the Akzhar Microdistrict Priest Sergiy Slesarchuk; Protodeacon Vladimir Syrovatsky, Hierodeacon Afanasy (Kozel), Deacon John Churkin, Deacon Rustik Yakubov.
The following people prayed at the service: Honored Artist of Russia, member of the Church and Public Council under the Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus' for the Development of Russian Church Singing O.N. Ovchinnikov; director of the Russian House in Almaty M.S. Simakova, employees of the Almaty diocesan administration, ktitors of the diocese, teachers and students of the central Sunday school of the Southern capital headed by the director G.V. Cherepanova, numerous parishioners.
The liturgical chants were performed by the small choir of the Nikolsky Cathedral under the direction of O. Solomonova.
During the service, fervent prayers were offered for the repose of the deceased Kazakh hierarchs, the ever-memorable builders and decorators of the Nikolsky Church, the leaders and warriors who laid down their lives for the faith and the Fatherland on the battlefield, all those who were tortured and killed by the atheists during the time of fierce persecution, those who died from hunger, cold, wounds, illnesses and backbreaking labor, and all Orthodox Christians who lived in the land of Kazakhstan and died piously.
The sermon on the communion verse was delivered by priest Georgy Sidorov.
At the end of the Liturgy, a glorification of the Nikolay-Kuchugursky holy martyrs took place - the clergy and choir sang the troparion, kontakion and magnification of the sufferers of Christ.
Then Metropolitan Alexander of Astana and Kazakhstan congratulated the archpastors, clergy and laity on the day of remembrance of the heavenly patrons of Alma-Ata and Semirechye and addressed the congregation with a word of instruction.
At the end of the service, His Eminence, accompanied by the hierarchs, clergy and believers, proceeded to the cathedral square to the worship cross erected in memory of the 90th anniversary of the feat of the holy martyrs Nikolay-Kuchugursky, where he performed a litiya and laid flowers.
"In the days of the celebration of the appearance of Christ the Life-Giver into the world, the Orthodox Church of Kazakhstan prayerfully marks the anniversary of the martyrdom of the shepherds who labored in the hour of fiery ordeal (1 Peter 4:12) in the St. Nicholas Cathedral in the city of Alma-Ata - Archpriests Alexander Skalsky, Stefan Ponomarev and Philip Grigoriev. We can fully attribute to them the laudatory words of St. Ephraim the Syrian: "Blessed are these ascetics of Christ, partakers of light and eternal life, pillars of faith, sons of the honest Church, strongholds of the walls of Heavenly Zion." "God is with us!" (Isaiah 8:10; Matthew 1:23) - the words of the ancient prophecy that came true in the mystery of the Nativity of Christ are now heard in churches. The Orthodox Church has lived with this joyful news for more than two millennia. This confidence inspired the preaching of those who laid its unshakable foundation – the holy apostles. With it, the ancient martyrs shed their blood for Christ. With this faith, the saints and pastors selflessly worked, enlightening and strengthening countries and peoples in the Orthodox faith. “God is with us!” – this truth imparted fortitude to the archpriests Stefan, Alexander and Philip, and to the countless host of new martyrs and confessors of the twentieth century, who ascended Golgotha during the years of the most severe persecution of Orthodoxy.” From the sermon of Metropolitan Alexander.