Address of the Head of the Orthodox Church of Kazakhstan, Metropolitan Alexander of Astana and Kazakhstan on the occasion of the celebration of the 25th anniversary of finding the relics of St. Sebastian of Karaganda

On October 22, 2022. 25 years have passed since the acquisition of the honest relics of the Monk Sebastian of Karaganda. The Head of the Orthodox Church of Kazakhstan, Metropolitan Alexander of Astana and Kazakhstan sent his appeal on the occasion of the historical date.

Your Eminences, all-honorable fathers, brothers and sisters!

Today we are celebrating a special event in the spiritual life of the Orthodox Church of Kazakhstan - a quarter of a century has passed since the acquisition of the relics of St. Sebastian of Karaganda.

“God,” St. John Chrysostom teaches us, “for this reason, He leaves us the bodies of the saints, in order to give us a reliable refuge and protection against the evils that surround us from everywhere.”

God is wonderful in His saints (Ps. 67:36), glorified His saint and revealed his honest relics from under the earthly vault, which became an inexhaustible source of healing and miracles for the believing people. “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.” (Matt. 5:14-15), - Christ the Savior addresses His disciples. It was pleasing to the Lord that for the sufferings and deeds that the Monk Sebastian lifted up in his life, he received the crown of truth (2 Tim. 4:8) not only in Heaven, but also on earth - among the faithful sons and daughters of the Church of Christ and those who who are only looking for their way to God.

At the tomb with the relics of St. Sebastian - the "Holy Servant Trinity" the last elder of the Optina Hermitage and a courageous confessor of the faith of the twentieth century - you can always meet pilgrims from all regions of Kazakhstan, from many regions of Russia, from countries near and far abroad. “He endured everything with humility, praying to God for salvation and enlightenment for everyone,” recalled the ascetic of piety Metropolitan Joseph (Chernov) about Schema-Archimandrite Sebastian. As in the days of earthly life, so now, standing before the throne of God in heavenly abodes, the humble Karaganda elder prays for everyone who calls for his intercession, who worships his holy relics with hope, who asks with faith for help and consolation. The miracles revealed by the holy Karaganda elder are numerous: many mental and physical ailments have been healed and continue to be healed, sorrows subside and life's circumstances change for the good, answers to the most difficult questions are found.

The Monk Sebastian can be called our contemporary. His life, preserved in detail by spiritual children, has become a new word about Christ's love, addressed to people living in a world overwhelmed by passions, unbelief and malice. “God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.” (1 John 4:16) – this is what the Apostle John the Theologian says about true holiness. The Monk Sebastian lived this evangelical love and generously bestowed it on all who were close to him.

The holy elder especially fell in love with the Kazakhstan land. After his release from imprisonment in Karlag, he had the opportunity to return to Russia, but he refused and told his spiritual children: “We will live here. Here the whole life is different and the people are different. People here are sincere, conscious, sipped grief. We will bring more benefits here, our second Motherland is here. I'll stay!" In these words, we hear the testament of St. Sebastian to all of us, living on the God-saving Kazakhstan land, the place of the exploits of many new martyrs and confessors, about the need to fulfill the obedience entrusted to us by God Himself - to be the guardians of the Orthodox shrines of Kazakhstan and to continue the work of the righteous and saints of God who lived here before us.

It will be right if on the day of the celebration of an important memorable date, we remember the last words of the reverend, spoken by him before moving to eternity: “I ask you all about one thing: live in peace. Peace and love is the most important thing. If you have this among yourselves, you will always have joy in your soul.” The memory of St. Sebastian of Karaganda moves us to a special deed of prayer for the peace and prosperity of Kazakhstan and for the welfare of all countries and peoples that are part of the canonical space of the Russian Orthodox Church. Kneeling before the relics and icon-painting images of the venerable elder, we ask him to be with us and raise our prayers to the Throne of the Lord for the conversion of people to the greatest value - to acquire the gifts of the Holy Spirit in their hearts the acquisition of shameless faith, strong hope and unfeigned love.

May God grant, that experience of active piety, preserved in the life of the Karaganda ascetic, in the people's memory of his life and monastic labors, will encourage us all to purify our souls and hearts, to follow the good example of Orthodox saints, who have fulfilled the commandment of love for God and neighbor.
Through the prayers of St. Sebastian, may the Lord preserve the Orthodox Church and our land of Kazakhstan, and multiply in us, according to the apostolic word, the fruits of the Holy Spirit: love, joy, peace, long-suffering, goodness, mercy