Hieromonk Iakov (Vorontsov), born in 1986, cleric of the Ascension Cathedral in Almaty. After the beginning of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, he made a public statement about the need for Kazakhstan to withdraw from the Collective Security Treaty Organization arguing that it was necessary «to fence off the aggressor in every possible way.» He also denounced the Russian invasion and its support on his social media. The Ahilla project produced a selection of his anti-war statements.
The priest also signed the appeal of the clergy of the Russian Orthodox Church for reconciliation and an end to the war in Ukraine.
Later, the Dean of the Cathedral, Archpriest Alexander Suvorov, mentioned in a Facebook post that the hieromonk was suspended from ministry without a ban on ministry. This was also reported by the Ahilla project.
On 19 June, the hieromonk posted on Facebook about the termination of his ministry in the Russian Orthodox Church saying that he was leaving for a «sabbatical».
On 15 July 2024, it became known that the court of the Astana and Alma-Ata eparchy of the Kazakhstan Metropolitan District banned him from active ministry and then defrocked him. The court’s decision was approved by Patriarch Kirill of Moscow.
