First Shrine for Persecuted Christians in Central Asia Opens in Kazakhstan

Astana, June 24, 2025 – A new Marian shrine dedicated to persecuted Christians was inaugurated at the Church of Our Mother of Perpetual Help in Kazakhstan’s capital, marking the first such shrine in Central Asia. In a country with a long and painful legacy of Christian oppression, particularly under Soviet rule, the new shrine offers a sacred space for prayer and solidarity. “Those who chose not to renounce their faith suffered unspeakable trials,” recalled Auxiliary Bishop Athanasius Schneider during his homily, echoing the words of St John Paul II during his 2001 visit to Astana.

The shrine is part of a global initiative by Nasarean.org, a U.S.-based organisation that launched the project in 2018 to support persecuted Christians worldwide. This newly established shrine is the sixth in the international network — and the first in Central Asia — centred around the icon of Mary, Mother of Persecuted Christians. Painted by Lebanese Melkite nun Souraya Herro, the icon carries the Aramaic inscription “Mother of the Persecuted,” connecting today’s suffering Church to the early martyrs and the language of Christ.

Each shrine in this network is blessed by a bishop and serves as a centre of spiritual refuge for victims of religious violence, discrimination, or exile. The Astana shrine received its blessing from Archbishop Tomasz Peta and has strong backing from Bishop Schneider.

A Nation Marked by Religious Suffering

Kazakhstan, a vast nation bordering Russia and China, holds deep symbolic meaning for the initiative. During the Soviet era, it was a principal location of the notorious Gulag labour camps, where millions — including clergy, nuns, and lay Christians — were imprisoned. Religious worship was banned, churches were shut down, and sacraments were celebrated in secrecy.

Entire ethnic communities, including Germans, Poles, Ukrainians, and Balts — many of them Catholic or Orthodox — were forcibly relocated to Kazakhstan in the 1930s. Bishop Schneider’s own family was among them. Born in 1961 to German Catholic parents exiled to the Urals, he was raised in the underground Church and attended clandestine liturgies. This personal history of faith under persecution continues to inform his ministry and pastoral outlook.

Hope Amid Tight Restrictions

Since gaining independence in 1991, Kazakhstan has legally recognised religious freedom. However, tight state controls persist. The country is predominantly Muslim (about 70%), while Christians, mainly Russian Orthodox, comprise 26% of the population. Catholics remain a small minority but actively contribute to society through educational, pastoral, and charitable efforts.

In 2022, Pope Francis visited Kazakhstan for the Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions, urging greater interfaith dialogue and religious liberty. His presence underscored the enduring, if quiet, role of the Catholic Church in this part of the world — a message that now finds visible expression in this new shrine for the persecuted.

Source: National Catholic Register