Metropolitan Alexander held a meeting on the celebration in Astana of the 170th anniversary of the founding the oldest church in the capital - the Cathedral of Constantine and Helena

April 9, 2024. Astana. In the spiritual, cultural and administrative center of the Kazakhstan Metropolitan District named after Equal-to-the-Apostles Cyril and Methodius, Metropolitan Alexander of Astana and Kazakhstan held a working meeting with the dean of the capital’s church district, Archimandrite Sergius (Karamyshev), clergy and employees of the diocesan administration.

The main topic of the meeting was the upcoming celebration of the 170th anniversary of the founding the oldest temple in Astana - the Cathedral in the name of Equal-to-the-Apostles Kings Constantine and Helen, a cultural and historical pearl of the Kazakhstan capital, an architectural monument of republican significance.

With the blessing of Metropolitan Alexander, celebrations dedicated to this significant historical date will take place on June 2. Parishioners and pilgrims will take part in the metropolitan service, will be able to see an exhibition dedicated to the history and modern life of the Constantine-Elenin parish and will hear concert performances by spiritual and secular groups of the capital; Game and competition programs will be organized for children and teenagers.

Especially for the anniversary date, a film about the cathedral will be created and an illustrated edition will be published; The temple choir will record an anniversary music album.

A report on preparations for the celebration was made by Archimandrite Sergius (Karamyshev) and the sacristan of the Constantine-Elenin Cathedral, Archpriest Sergius Kaliev.

The Metropolitan listened to the reports, made adjustments and amendments, and gave the meeting participants the appropriate instructions.

The construction of the Church of Constantine and Helena in the Akmola fortification, as modern Astana was called in the mid-19th century, began in 1854 and continued until October 1855. The first church was built from wood using public donations. With the blessing of the Bishop of Tobolsk and Siberia (Lebedev), on July 8, 1856, Archpriest John Toropov consecrated the newly built church. On April 27, 1893, the Tobolsk spiritual consistory decided to move the wooden church to a more honorable and significant place - to the central square of the city of Akmolinsk. On May 14, 1900, the foundation stone of the temple took place in a new location. Two years later, the temple was completely installed and crowned with five domes. For a long time, the Church of Constantine and Helena was the center of the deanery district of the steppe parishes, which included many villages of the Akmola district.
In 1938, by decision of the godless authorities, the temple was closed. Crosses were removed from the domes, bells were removed from the bell tower. The church building was transferred to the local history museum. In 1941-1942, a separate communications battalion of the 29th Infantry Division, formed in Akmola, was located in the premises of the temple. In 1942, at the numerous requests of believing townspeople and residents of surrounding villages, services in the Church of Constantine and Helena were resumed.

In the 1970s, at the behest of St. Sebastian of Karaganda and with the blessing of Metropolitan Joseph (Chernov), Archimandrite Kirill founded a convent at the Church of Constantine and Helena in honor of the icon of the Mother of God “Recovery of the Lost,” which is still in operation today. He restored the ancient church, installing two new chapels in it: in the basement - in the name of the Grand Duke Vladimir, in the bell tower - in the name of Equal-to-the-Apostles Cyril and Methodius. In 1988, the Church of Equal-to-the-Apostles Kings Constantine and Helena was included in the state list of historical monuments.

In 1997, the capital of Kazakhstan was moved from Almaty to the city of Akmola, which became known as Astana. On April 1, 1999, the Church of Constantine and Helena received the status of a cathedral. In 2010, the newly built Assumption Church, consecrated by His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus', became the cathedral. The Cathedral of Constantine and Helena remains the second most important temple of the capital's deanery. On its territory there are buildings of a convent, a Sunday school building, a library, an administrative complex and the residence of the head of the Orthodox Church of Kazakhstan.