Metropolia of Kazakhstan
The Metropolia of Kazakhstan is a metropolia of the Church of Russia with jurisdiction over the Republic of Kazakhstan in Central Asia. The metropolia consists of six eparchies. The Metropolitan of Astana serves as First Hierarch of the Orthodox Church in Kazakhstan and head of the Metropolia.
Contents
History
In 1871 the Russian Orthodox Church in Turkestan was organized as a diocese with its seat in Verne (now Almaty, Kazakhstan). Forty-five years later a separate vicariate was created for the Orthodox Church in Kazakhstan with its seat in Verne, whilst in June 1945 the Diocese of Alma-Ata and Kazakhstan was established by the Holy Synod. As the Soviet Union collapsed this diocese was divided into three freestanding dioceses directly under the Moscow Patriarchate, the Eparchies of Alma-Ata and Semipalatinsk, Chimkent and Akmola, and Uralsk and Guryevskiy.
Founding of the Metropolia
Following the designation of Astana as the new capital of the Republic of Kazakhstan the seat of the Eparchy of Alma-Ata and Semipalatinsk was transferred from Almaty to Astana, while the diocese itself was renamed the Eparchy of Astana and Almaty. In July 2010 the Eparchies of Astana, Chimkent, and Uralsk were formally organized by the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church as the Metropolia of Kazakhstan, with the recently enthroned Archbishop of Astana being elevated to the rank of metropolitan and first hierarch of the Orthodox Church in Kazakhstan.
The Metropolia was established to better organize the life of the Orthodox Church in Kazakhstan. Although not autonomous or self-governing, the Metropolia has its own statute approved by the Holy Synod and is responsible for coordinating the educational programs, publishing work, social outreach, and missionary efforts of the Kazakh Orthodox Church.
In October 2010 the Holy Synod reorganized the territories of the original three eparchies to establish the new Eparchies of Karaganda, Kostanai, and Pavlodar. The following month Metropolitan Alexander of Astana stated that the Kazakh language would be gradually introduced into the divine services of the Orthodox Church in Kazakhstan.
Constituent eparchies and hierarchs
Eparchy of Astana and Almty
- Metropolitan Alexander (Mogilev)
- Bishop Gennadius (Gogolev) Auxiliary bishop
Eparchy of Uralsk and Guryevskiy
- Archbishop Anthony (Moskalenko)
Eparchy of Chimkent and Akmola
- Archbishop Eleutherius (Kozorez)
Eparchy of Karaganda
- Bishop Sebastian (Osokin)
Eparchy of Kostanai
- Bishop Anatolius (Aksenov)
Eparchy of Pavlodar
- Bishop Barnabas (Safronov)
External links
- Metropolia of Kazakhstan (Official Website)
- Eparchy of Astana and Alma-Ata (Moscow Patriarchate)
- Eparchy of Chimkent and Akmola (Moscow Patriarchate)
- Eparchy of Karaganda (Official Website)
- Eparchy of Kostanai (Moscow Patriarchate)
- Eparchy of Pavlodar (Official Website)
- Eparchy of Uralsk and Guryevskiy (Official Website)
- Orthodox Services in Kazakh (Pravoslavie)