Second Sunday of Great Lent. The head of the Metropolitan District celebrated the Liturgy in the main church of the Kostanay diocese

March 31, 2024 – week of the 2nd Lent, “week of light-giving fasts”, memory of St. Gregory Palamas, Archbishop of Thessaloniki; Memorial Day of St. Cyril, Archbishop of Jerusalem.

Metropolitan Alexander of Astana and Kazakhstan celebrated the Divine Liturgy of St. Basil the Great at the Constantine and Helena Cathedral in the city of Kostanay.

The head of the Metropolitan District was concelebrated by: the secretary of the Kostanay diocese, Hieromonk Gennady (Burdyuzha), the rector of the St. Michael's Church in the village of Kachar, Kostanay region, Archpriest Vasily Korolev, the cleric of the Constantine-Eleninsky Cathedral, Archpriest Andrey Korchazhnikov, the dean of the Sarykol church district, Archpriest Vitaly Kleba, the rector of the St. Nicholas Church in the city of Costa. Archpriest Vitaly Gutsan, cleric of the main church of the diocese, Hegumen Innokenty (Pomogalov), head of the missionary department of the Kostanay diocese, Hegumen Maxim (Boikov), head of the Metropolitan's secretariat, Hieromonk Prokhor (Endovitsky), rector of the Church of the Kazan Mother of God in the village of Zatobolsk, Priest Andrey Krutin, Priest Alexey Kovalev, Priest Georgy Chernykh , Hieromonk Methodius (Chulkov), Protodeacon Vladimir Syrovatsky, Protodeacon Alexander Mokiy, Deacon Eliazar Aitbakin, Deacon Alexander Piven, Deacon Sergius Slesarchuk.

Before the start of the service, an ark with the relics of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker was delivered to the main church of the Kostanay diocese for the prayerful worship of believers.

The choir of the Constantine-Eleninsky Cathedral of the city of Kostanay sang under the direction of T. Zhebrak.

The sermon after the communion verse was delivered by Archpriest Vitaly Kleba.

At the end of the Liturgy, glorification of the saint of God took place before the relics of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker.

His Eminence donated an icon with a particle of the relics of Equal-to-the-Apostles Emperor Constantine and his mother Queen Helen to the main church of the city of Kostanay. Hieromonk Gennady (Burdyuzha) accepted the sacred gift.

At the end of the service, the Head of the Orthodox Church of Kazakhstan addressed those present with a sermon, in which he spoke about the life and archpastoral works of St. Gregory Palamas.

“On the second Sunday of Great Lent, called in the liturgical charter the “week of light-giving fasts,” the Church of Christ, in addition to celebrating Sunday, remembers one of the great hierarchs and preachers of Orthodoxy - St. Gregory Palamas, Archbishop of the city of Thessaloniki. Great Lent is a Divine call for the renewal of man, his liberation from sin, the inner enlightenment of the mind and heart, a call to march towards the bright radiance of the joy of Holy Easter. Saint Gregory Palamas taught that the mysterious Divine light that shone upon the apostles on Mount Tabor, which shone in the life-giving Tomb of the Savior at His Resurrection from the dead, can actually be seen and felt by every believer. Moreover, joining this light is an indispensable condition for our salvation. The vision of this light is nothing other than living and active communication with Christ, union with Him - “the true Light that enlightens every person who comes into the world” (John 1:9).” We are able to become partakers of Divine life and Divine nature through illumination by grace, the means of acquiring which is purification of the heart, keeping the mind from vain and evil thoughts, fervent prayer, reading the Word of God, pious and virtuous life according to the commandments, sincere service to God and neighbor, participation in the sacraments of Confession and Communion of the Holy Mysteries of Christ.” From the sermon of Metropolitan Alexander.