A collection of sermons by Archbishop Zephaniah (Sokolsky) "The mouth of the righteous speaks wisdom" has been published

In 2022, the Kazakhstan Metropolitan District celebrates a spiritually and historically significant anniversary - the 150th anniversary of the establishment of the Turkestan diocese.

With the blessing of Metropolitan Alexander of Astana and Kazakhstan the publishing department of the Orthodox Church of Kazakhstan published the book “The mouth of the righteous speaks wisdom” specially for the memorable date.

The collection includes selected teachings and words of Archbishop Zephaniah (Sokolsky) - the first hierarch of the Turkestan diocese, a prominent spiritual enlightener of the 19th century, an apostle of Central Asia. His homilitic heritage is an example of classical style, composition, the use of rhetorical devices and sources in the construction of a sermon.

In addition, to the well-known sermons of St. Zephaniah, the publication includes previously unpublished materials, old photographs of the places of service of the archpastor, as well as modern shots from the life of the Kazakh Metropolitan District. For the convenience of the modern reader the text has been edited to reflect modern orthography; in the interlinear translation of archaic words and expressions is given, the meaning of which today is completely or partially lost.

This collection of sermons will serve as a useful and edifying guide for clergy and laity, and will also interest lovers of Russian literature and connoisseurs of spiritual literature.

Metropolitan Alexander's introductory remarks, which open the book, say: “The teachings of Archbishop Zephaniah are a vivid monument of the preaching art of the 19th century. According to the content, the words and speeches of the saint can be classified as moral and practical, all of them are filled with an explanation of the ethical commandments of Holy Scripture and church institutions, and not rarely contain denunciations. In his sermons, he reveals to his flock the positive content of the foundations of the Orthodox faith, connects dogmatic truths with everyday life and convinces parishioners to think carefully about the teachings of the Church of Christ. Despite the fact that among the listeners of Vladyka over the many years of his archpastoral ministry there were people of different social and class affiliations, different cultural and intellectual levels, all his speeches are distinguished by a high, noble style. Whether His Grace addresses clergymen or seminarians, townspeople or peasants, parishioners of cathedrals or believers gathered in a modest rural church, he always and everywhere strives to help people overcome everyday life and worldly bustle, to carry them to the heights of the spirit, from the earthly to the Heavenly.
The year 2022 is significant for the Orthodox Church of Kazakhstan by a historical date - 150 years have passed since the establishment of the Turkestan diocese, the successor of which today is the Orthodox Church of Kazakhstan. This event, according to the words of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus' was “a logical result of the centuries-old Orthodox presence on this earth, gave new opportunities for witness to Christ and contributed to the development of various areas of church life.”
The President of our country, highly respected Kassym-Jomart Kemelevich Tokayev, congratulating the Orthodox believers of the Republic on the anniversary celebration, said: “Today, being a worthy successor to the diocese the Metropolitan District is actively engaged in educational and social activities, promotes traditional spiritual and moral values, the progressive development of interethnic and interfaith dialogue".
I hope this book will be interesting and useful both for preachers, believers and for everyone interested in the history of Orthodoxy in Kazakhstan.
Eternal and grateful memory to the Archbishop of Turkestan and Tashkent Zephanius - an ascetic of piety, a preacher of the Gospel truth, a zealous worker in the field of Christ, an apostle of the Great Steppe and Semirechie.