28th church holiday. Folk omens for the Assumption

On October 29, 2 Orthodox church holidays are celebrated. The list of events informs about church holidays, fasts, days of veneration of the memory of saints.

The list will help you find out the date of a significant religious event for Orthodox Christians.

Martyr Longinus the Centurion, others like the Cross of the Lord.

According to legend, Saint Longinus, to whom one of the boundaries of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem is dedicated, was the very Roman centurion who pierced the side of the crucified Christ with a spear. Modern researchers suggest that the name Longinus itself comes from the Greek word for "spear".

In the New Testament, the episode with the centurion (centurion) is described in the Gospel of John (John 19: 31-33), and the Evangelist Mark reports that the Roman soldier who was present at the execution immediately after the death of Jesus said: “This Man was truly the Son of God” ( Mark 15:39). The name of this Roman is known only from the Apocrypha - none of the Evangelists mentions him.

According to church tradition, he was among the Roman guards left to guard the Holy Sepulcher, witnessed the Resurrection of Christ and refused to testify that the disciples had stolen the body of Jesus. In addition, according to church tradition, he suffered from cataracts, and the blood of Christ, splashing into his eyes from the wound he had inflicted, healed his ailment.

After that, Longinus repented, he himself became a Christian and a preacher of Christianity, was baptized by the apostles and was killed in 58 in Caesarea in Cappadocia, where he was from. The former centurion himself went out to meet the detachment sent after him, brought the soldiers to his house, fed them and only after that he named himself, and when the embarrassed guests invited him to hide, he refused and was beheaded.

The compiler of the first life of Saint Longinus was Saint Isychius of Jerusalem, who found his acts of martyrdom and based on them in the 5th century he compiled a biography. Orthodox Church honors Longinus as a holy martyr on October 16 (October 29, new style).

Many legends are associated with a sacred relic - Longinus' spear (or rather, with its tip, decorated with a cross-shaped slot - the so-called Saint Geghard). There are at least six known of them.
One from the IV century - from the time of the baptism of Armenia - is kept in the sacristy cathedral in Etchmiadzin: it is believed that he, along with other relics, was brought from Caesarea by the Palestinian baptist of Armenia Gregory the Illuminator.

The second "spear of Longinus" from time immemorial hung in the Great Hall of the Vatican (and before that - in the Lateran Palace of the Popes).

The third was kept in the ancient capital of Poland, Krakow. According to one of the legends, it was with this spear that the Polish knight Dobko (Dobeslav) defeated Ulrich von Jungingen, the Supreme Master of the Teutonic Order, in the battle of Grunwald in 1410.

Fourth participants of the First crusade found during the siege of Antioch in 1098.

The fifth "spear of Longinus" was kept in Constantinople for several centuries. In the XIII century, the French king Louis Saint, returning from the crusade, brought him to Paris.

The sixth in the 10th century was presented to the German king Henry I by the Burgundian king Rudolph (history is silent about how the spear got to Rudolph of Burgundy), and from it passed to the Roman-German emperor Otto I the Great. After him, the sacred relic was successively owned by five Roman-German emperors of the Saxon dynasty, and then by seven Kaisers of the Swabian dynasty of the Hohenstaufen, including the legendary Frederick I Barbarossa and his no less famous grandson Frederick II.

Over time, the relic passed to the Roman-Germanic emperors from the Austrian Habsburg dynasty and has since been kept in the treasury of their Vienna Hofburg Palace along with the coronation regalia of the Holy Roman Empire.

After the annexation of Austria to Hitler's Third Reich in 1938, the spear was transported to Nuremberg, and from there - to the ancient Westphalian castle of Wewelsburg, restored by Heinrich Himmler as the headquarters of the "black order" of the SS. spears of Longinus. After 1945, the relic was returned to Vienna, where it remains to this day. Many researchers believe that this is the true spear of Saint Longinus.

On August 28, Orthodox Christians celebrate the Assumption Holy Mother of God... This is an important holiday for followers of Christians of most denominations, but Catholics celebrate it on August 15 according to the Gregorian calendar. This holiday is one of the most important in Orthodoxy.

"Assumption" is an outdated word. Translated into modern Russian, it means “death, death”.

The Dormition of the Virgin is included in the list of 12 most important Orthodox holidays. This day ends the two-week Dormition Fast, dedicated to the Mother of God. A lot of folk traditions are associated with the holiday of August 28, signs and church rules, which every believer should know about.

When the Assumption of the Virgin is celebrated

The feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary is celebrated on August 28 in a new style. He has 1 forefeast day and 9 afterfeast days. Forefeast - one or several days before a big holiday, the services of which already include prayers dedicated to the upcoming celebrated event. Accordingly, afterfeast is the same days after the holiday.

What is the Assumption of the Virgin

The full name of the holiday is the Dormition of the Most Holy Lady of our Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary. This is one of the twentieth Orthodox holidays. The twelve feasts are dogmatically closely related to the events of the earthly life of the Lord Jesus Christ and the Mother of God and are divided into Lord's (dedicated to the Lord Jesus Christ) and Theotokos (dedicated to the Mother of God). The Dormition is a feast of the Theotokos.

The holiday, which is celebrated in the Russian Orthodox Church on August 28 in the new style (August 15 in the old style), is established in memory of the death of the Mother of God. Christians are led to him by a two-week Dormition Fast, which is comparable in severity to Great Lent. Interestingly, the Dormition is the last twelveth feast of the Orthodox Church year (ending on September 13 in the new style).

What can you eat for the Assumption of the Virgin

On August 28, on the feast of the Assumption of the Mother of God, if it falls on Wednesday or Friday, you can eat fish. In this case, breaking the fast is postponed to the next day. But if the Assumption falls on other days of the week, then there is no fast. In 2016, the feast of the Assumption is not a fast day.

Events of the Assumption of the Virgin

From the New Testament we learn that the Savior, crucified on the cross, asked his closest disciple - the Apostle John the Theologian - to take care of Mary: Seeing the mother and the disciple standing here, whom he loved, he says to His Mother: Wife! Behold, your son. Then he says to the disciple: behold, thy Mother! And from that time this disciple took her to him (John 19: 26-27). After the crucifixion of Christ, the Mother of God, together with the disciples of her Son, was in prayer and fasting. On the day of the Descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles (Pentecost), she also received the gift of the Holy Spirit.

What can you do on the feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary

For the ancestors, this holiday coincided with the harvest, so the last sheaf was dressed up in a dress and worn with songs in the villages. This sheaf was called dozhinka. After such processions, the sheaf had to be placed under the icon. And then they had a very big feast, where they sang, danced in circles, made beer and mead. The next day there will be Nut Spas, therefore it is customary to collect nuts and prepare various winter preparations on the Most Pure.

Since this holiday is at the same time the end of the Dormition Lent, that is, almost anything can be done. But fatty and meaty is better to limit all the same. If the Assumption fell on Wednesday or Friday, then the breaking of the fast was postponed to the next day.

You can work at home and in the garden, make rolls, ferment cabbage, and do housework. Some villagers believe that some spikelets should be left on this day, as this will help increase the harvest next year.

Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary, omens

On August 28, the people celebrated the harvest, which meant the end of the harvest. At the beginning of the day, they tried to consecrate those fields where wheat and grain grew.

This holiday falls at the end of summer, therefore, according to the weather conditions on this day, they judged what autumn will be:

if a rainbow appears in the sky, autumn days will be warm;
if the weather on the Assumption is clear and sunny, then autumn will be rainy and cloudy;
a lot of cobwebs - early, frosty and little snowy winter;
if frosts come after the Assumption, then the autumn will be very long;
watched how the water behaves. If you are not worried, then the autumn will be calm, and there will be no snowstorms in winter;
if it is very foggy on the day of the Assumption, a large harvest of mushrooms should be expected, and the warm season will delight people a little more;
frost on plants on August 28 promises a very short autumn season, and frosts will come very soon.

Events of the Assumption of the Virgin

Everything that we know about the death of the Mother of the Lord Jesus Christ is drawn from Church Tradition. In the canonical texts, we will not read anything about how and under what circumstances the Mother of God departed to the Lord and was buried. Tradition is one of the sources of our creed, together with the Holy Scriptures.

In written records starting from the 4th century, we find references to how the Mother of God lived further. Most authors write that she was physically delighted (that is, taken) from earth to heaven. It happened like this. Three days before the death of the Mother of God, the Archangel Gabriel appeared and announced the upcoming Assumption. At that time she was in Jerusalem. Everything happened exactly as the Archangel said. After the death of the Most Pure Virgin, the apostles buried her body in Gethsemane, in the same place where the parents of the Mother of God and her husband, righteous Joseph, rested. The ceremony was attended by everyone except the Apostle Thomas. On the third day after the burial, Thomas wanted to see her coffin. The coffin was opened, but the body of the Mother of God was no longer in it - only her shroud.

History of the celebration of the Assumption of the Virgin

Reliable information about the history of the feast of the Assumption begins only from the end of the 6th century. Most church historians believe that the holiday was established under the Byzantine emperor of Mauritius, who ruled in 592-602. Most likely, before that time, the Assumption was in Constantinople a local, that is, not a general church holiday.

Sermon on the Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary - Video

Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos: history, icons, prayers, sermons

On August 28, new style, and August 15, old style, the Russian Orthodox Church celebrates the feast of the Dormition of the Most Holy Lady of our Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary. The Dormition of the Theotokos is a holiday dedicated to an event that is not described in the Bible, but which is known thanks to the Tradition of the Church. The very word "dormition" in modern Russian can be translated as "death".

After the ascension of Jesus, the Most Holy Mother of God remained in the care of the Apostle John the Theologian. When King Herod persecuted Christians, the Mother of God withdrew with John to Ephesus and lived there in the house of his parents.

Here She constantly prayed that the Lord would quickly take Her to Himself. During one of these prayers, which the Theotokos performed at the place of the ascension of Christ, the archangel Gabriel appeared to Her and announced that in three days Her earthly life would end and the Lord would take Her to Himself.

Before her death, the Blessed Virgin Mary wanted to see all the apostles, who by that time had dispersed to different places to preach the Christian faith. Despite this, the desire of the Mother of God was fulfilled: the Holy Spirit miraculously gathered the apostles at the bed of the Most Holy Theotokos, where She prayed and awaited Her death. The Savior Himself, surrounded by angels, descended to Her to take Her soul with Him.

The Most Holy Theotokos turned to the Lord with a prayer of thanks and asked to bless all those who honor Her memory. She also showed great humility: having achieved holiness, which no other person can compare, being the Most Honest Cherub and the Most Glorious without comparing the Seraphim, She prayed to Her Son to protect Her from the dark satanic power and from the ordeals that every soul passes after death. Seeing the apostles, the Mother of God joyfully gave Her soul into the hands of the Lord, and immediately the angelic singing was heard.

After his death, the coffin with the body of the Most Pure Virgin was carried by the apostles to Gethsemane and there he was buried in a cave, the entrance of which was filled up with a stone. After the funeral, the apostles remained at the cave for three more days and prayed. The apostle Thomas, who was late for the burial, was so saddened that he did not have time to bow to the ashes of the Mother of God, that the apostles allowed the entrance to the cave and the grave to be opened so that he could bow down to the holy remains. Having opened the coffin, they discovered that the body of the Mother of God was not there, and thus they were convinced of Her miraculous bodily ascension to Heaven. In the evening of the same day, the Mother of God herself appeared to the apostles who had gathered for supper and said: “Rejoice! I am with you all the days. ”

The Church calls the demise of the Mother of God Assumption, and not death, because ordinary human death, when the body returns to the earth and the spirit returns to God, did not touch the Blessed One. “The laws of nature in Thee are defeated, Virgin Virgin, - the Holy Church sings in the troparion of the feast, - virginity is preserved in birth, and life is combined with death: being born as a Virgin and after living death, You always save, Mother of God, Your inheritance.”

She only fell asleep in order to awaken at the same moment for eternally blessed life and after three days with an incorruptible body to move into a heavenly incorruptible dwelling. She fell asleep in a sweet dream after the heavy wakefulness of Her mournful life and “passed away to the Belly,” that is, to the Source of Life, as the Mother of Life, delivering with Her prayers the souls of the earthly born from death, instilling in them with Her Dormition the presentiment of eternal life. Truly, "in the prayers of the relentless Mother of God and in the intercessions, the immutable hope, the coffin and mortification will not hold back."

Dormition of the Virgin - icons

Prayers for the feast of the Assumption of the Virgin

Troparion, voice 1

At Christmas you preserved virginity, / in the suppression of the world you did not leave, the Mother of God, / you fell to your belly, / Mother of the Existing Belly, // and with Your prayers save our soul from death.

Kontakion, voice 2

In the prayers of the Unsleeping Mother of God / and in intercessions, the immutable hope / coffin and mortification will not hold back: / like the Mother's Belly / to the belly put // into the womb the ever-virgin All-in-One.

Exaltation

We magnify Thee, / Most Immaculate Mother of Christ our God, / and glorify the all-glorious / Your Dormition.

On August 28, 2020, Orthodox Christians celebrate the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This holiday by the Holy Russian Orthodox Church is considered one of the great twelve non-passing holidays.

It is called the Assumption ("falling asleep"), because the Mother of God died quietly, as if asleep, and her body did not stay in the grave for long, because after three days She was resurrected by the Lord and ascended to heaven.

Orthodox Christians prepared for this holiday with a two-week fast, strictly observing the charter from 14 to 27 August. On Monday, Wednesday and Friday, the Church Rule prescribes "dry eating", on Tuesday and Thursday - boiled food, but without oil, on Saturdays and Sundays, wine and oil are allowed.

Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary 2020: history

After the death of the Lord Jesus Christ on the cross, His Most Pure Mother for about 15 years (according to other sources, 10 years or 22 years) lived in Jerusalem, in the house of the Apostle John the Theologian, whose care the Lord entrusted Her with. The Most Holy Mother of God became a common Mother for all of Christ's disciples. They prayed with Her and listened with great joy and consolation to Her instructive talks about the Savior. When the Christian faith spread to other countries, many Christians came from distant countries to see and listen to the Mother of God.

Living in Jerusalem, the Mother of God loved to visit those places where the Savior often visited, where He suffered, died, rose again and ascended to heaven. She prayed in these places, cried, remembering the sufferings of the Savior, and rejoiced in the place of His Resurrection and Ascension. She often prayed that Christ would take Her to Himself as soon as possible.

Once, when the Most Holy Mary was praying on the Mount of Olives, the Archangel Gabriel appeared to Her with a date branch in his hands and brought Her the joyful news that in three days Her earthly life would end and the Lord would take Her to Himself. The Most Holy Mother of God rejoiced at this news. She told about this to her baptized son, John, and began to prepare for her death. The rest of the apostles were not in Jerusalem at that time; they dispersed to other countries to preach about the Savior.

The Mother of God wanted to say goodbye to them, and so the Lord miraculously gathered all the apostles to Her, except Thomas, transferring them with His omnipotent power. It was sad for them to be deprived of their Lady and their common Mother, when they found out why God had gathered them together. But the Mother of God consoled them, promising not to leave them and all Christians after Her death, to always pray for them. Then She blessed them all.

At the hour of death, an extraordinary light illuminated the room where the Mother of God lay - the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, surrounded by Angels, appeared and received Her most pure soul.

The apostles buried the most pure body of the Mother of God at her request in the garden of Gethsemane, in the cave where the bodies of Her parents and righteous Joseph were buried. Many miracles took place during the burial. From touching the bed of the Mother of God, the blind received their sight, demons were cast out and every disease was healed. Many people followed her most pure body. The Jewish priests and leaders tried to disperse this holy procession, but the Lord invisibly guarded it. One Jewish priest, by the name of Athos, ran up and grabbed the bed, in which the body of the Mother of God was being carried, in order to overturn it. But an invisible Angel cut off both of his hands. Athos, struck by such a terrible miracle, immediately repented, and the Apostle Peter healed him.

Three days after the burial of the Mother of God, the absent Apostle Thomas also arrived in Jerusalem. He was very saddened that he did not say goodbye to the Mother of God, and with all his soul he wanted to bow to Her most pure body. The apostles, taking pity on him, decided to go and roll the stone away from the grave cave in order to give him the opportunity to say goodbye to the body of the Mother of God. But when they opened the cave, they did not find Her holy body in it, but only one burial shroud. The amazed apostles all returned together to the house and prayed to God that He would reveal to them what had become of the body of the Mother of God. In the evening, at the end of the meal, during prayer, they heard angelic singing. Looking up, the apostles saw the Mother of God in the air, surrounded by angels, in the radiance of heavenly glory.

The mother said to the apostles: “Rejoice! I am with you all the days; and I will always be your prayer book before God. " The apostles exclaimed in joy: "Most Holy Theotokos, help us!"

This is how the Lord Jesus Christ glorified His Most Holy Mother. He resurrected Her and placed Her above all His Angels. (The description of the Dormition of the Mother of God is in the Holy Tradition, it is sacredly preserved by the Holy Russian Orthodox Church.)

In the Y century, the funeral vestments of the Mother of God, kept in Jerusalem, were brought to Constantinople by Queen Pulcheria, the wife of Marcian, and laid by her in the Blachernae temple.

Immediately after the end of the short, but very important for every Christian, Dormition Fast (lasts from August 14 to August 27, 2016), there will come a big religious holiday August 28 - Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos. Her long life She was modest - until her day of Assumption, she remained a virgin in body and soul, maintaining sincerity and purity of thoughts and deeds. Orthodox holiday August 28 is dedicated to the death of the Virgin Mary, but it is considered a bright and joyful day. Having passed away from physical life, the Most Holy Theotokos remained alive for all Christians. Sincerely praying believers receive signs and help from the Mother of God. Many folk signs are associated with the feast of the Dormition of the Theotokos. For example, they say that any construction must be completed before August 28, and on the day of the Assumption, stakes and any sharp objects cannot be stuck into the ground.

What church holiday is celebrated on August 28?

28 August to church calendar- Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The Mother of God was loved by all people, but was especially revered by the apostles - disciples of Christ. It was they who, with a smile and tears in their eyes, accompanied Mary on her last journey. It is believed that after her physical death (dormition), the Mother of God ascended to heaven in order to invisibly help believing Christians from there, protecting them from harm.

Church holiday August 28 - Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos

Church holiday August 28 - Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos begins with the ringing of bells. Temples report sad, but at the same time joyful news: the death of the Mother of God and her eternal life next to the Father in heaven. Many believers who hitherto observed the Dormition Fast, remembering the modesty of life on the land of Mary, do not seek to break the fast with meat and dairy products, and also wear dark, mourning clothes... In all churches, solemn liturgies are held in honor of the Mother of God.

Signs of a church holiday on August 28

Many national signs are associated with the church holiday on August 28. For example, from this day on, a girl must try very hard to find a groom. Otherwise, she will not wait for marriage this year. A trip to the church on the day of the Assumption of the Virgin is simply a must, then the Mother of God will help you throughout the year. On this day, it is considered a bad omen to stick something sharp into the ground. For loved ones, you need to set a generous table: then prosperity will come to your house. August 28 is considered the beginning of the young Indian Summer: the last days of this year are established. Sowing (winter bread), harvesting is coming to an end. A good omen of this day will remain to leave a few uncompressed spikelets on the ground, tying them with a "sheaf": the harvest will be excellent!

What cannot be done on the church holiday on August 28?

August 28 is already very cool, even during the day. That is why the ban on walking barefoot on this day can be explained quite simply: you can catch a cold. In the Assumption, you cannot stick stakes and sticks into the ground: most likely, this is due to the last minute of Christ's life on earth (his body, crucified on the cross, was pierced with a spear). Quarreling, and even more so - fighting - on August 28 is strictly prohibited. Bearing in mind the modesty of Mother Mary during her life on earth, you do not need to eat much, even despite the end of the Dormition Fast.

The church holiday on August 28 - the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos - is not one of the great Christian celebrations, but its significance for each of the believers is so great that the Dormition is celebrated in almost every family. Not only churched people go to churches. On this day, many go to church and light a candle at the face of the Mother of God, secretly praying for her help and salvation. The signs associated with this day and the prohibitions on the Assumption of the Virgin are more related to the way of life, righteous behavior and modesty.

The church honors four martyrs who suffered during the persecution of Christians under the emperor Decius in the 3rd century.

These martyrs lived around the year 250 during the reign of the emperor Decius and the proconsul of the East, Valerian. Saint Carp was the son of a pagan priest. He believed in Christ, was baptized, and after some time became bishop of the Church of Pergamum, founded by St. John the Evangelist. Papila came from Thyatira. Instructed in the faith and baptized by Karp, he was ordained a deacon and stayed with the bishop and spiritual father in Pergamum to preach the word of God. They did not want to obey the edict of the emperor, who commanded that the sacred vessels and clothes be handed over to the authorities, so they were arrested and brought before the proconsul.

Before Valerian Christians fearlessly confessed the Lord, and announced that will take any meal, but did not renounce Christ, for the sake of honoring the lifeless idols. The confidence of Karp and Papila aroused the anger of the proconsul. He ordered them to be tied behind the horses and made them run in front of his chariot from Thyatira to Sardis - a distance of about 60 kilometers. In Sardis, they were tied to a rack and the living were stripped of their skin with iron hooks. As Karp smiled during the torture, the astonished ruler asked the reason. The saint answered:

"I saw the glory of the Lord and rejoiced!"

Agathodorus, Karp's servant, who followed him, at this time received an assurance from an angel that he too should confess Christ by blood. He approached the executioners and in a loud voice declared his faith in the true God. They immediately seized him, hung him on a rack together with Papila and Karp, and beat him with rods with such cruelty that he went to the Lord.

Papila was tied to four stakes of great height and beaten with stones. God protected His servant - he came out unharmed from this trial. And again Papila appeared with Karp before the ruler. Then they were dragged through thorny bushes, beaten on the stomachs, and then given to be torn apart by predators in the amphitheater. But there - lo and behold! - the lion spoke in a human voice, in order to reproach the cruelty of those who tortured the holy martyrs of Christ. They shut their ears, just not to admit that even beasts without reason confess Christ. Then they nailed iron sandals to the feet of the saints and threw them into the blazing furnace. In the midst of the raging flames, Karp exclaimed:

"Be blessed, Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, who has worthy of me, a sinner, to become a partaker of Your inheritance!"

At the moment when the souls of both martyrs departed to God, a Christian named Agathonica exclaimed:

"And I also saw a glorious celebration and wish to sit there to join it!"

Despite the vain persuasions of her relatives, who reminded her of her duty in relation to little child, she, rejecting the natural weakness of her sex, threw herself into the fire with the words:

"Lord, help me, for I am running to You!"

So her soul departed to heavenly palaces to share heavenly bliss with her companions.

Memorial Day of Saint Benjamin (XIV century). Before taking monasticism, he was a merchant. He was a monk of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra. Buried in Theodosiev (Distant) Caves.

The Monk Benjamin of the Caves lived in the XIV century and before taking monasticism "was a great merchant." Once, during the divine service to Saint Benjamin, the words of the Savior sunk deep in the heart: as if the inconvenience of riches will enter the Kingdom of Heaven (Matthew 19:23). Having distributed his property to the poor, Saint Benjamin became a monk, "pleasing the Lord God in fasting and prayer even to death." Buried in the Feodosia cave.

Uncovering of the relics of Hieromartyr Thaddeus (Assumption), Archbishop of Tver and Kashinsky

The celebration takes place three times a year: February 25, May 7 and October 26. Believers gather for divine services and pray in front of the icon for deliverance from physical and mental illnesses, ask for help in work, for sending down prosperity and help in troubles. In special chants, parishioners praise the Iberian Mother of God and her miracles.

In some places, a procession is made with the icon. This was especially common in earlier times: it was believed that the Iberian Mother of God protects from natural disasters and sends a rich harvest, so the believers bypassed the village with an icon in their hands.

The holiday is intended to remind that heavenly forces do not leave a person in difficult times.

The Iberian icon of the Mother of God or the Goalkeeper, located on Mount Athos, became famous for many miracles. On October 26, the Orthodox Church celebrates a holiday in honor of the transfer of the miraculous image to Moscow - an exact copy of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God was brought from Athos in 1648. According to legend, one of the most revered images of the Mother of God was created by the Holy Apostle Luke - the evangelist painted the icon in the days of the earthly life of the Most Holy Theotokos and with Her blessing.

For the first time this icon of the Mother of God was mentioned in the 9th century - at that time the Holy images were desecrated and destroyed both in churches and in homes. The ancient icon of the Mother of God during the cruel struggle against the Christian religion was kept by a pious widow who lived near the city of Nicaea (the territory of modern Turkey) with her son.

According to legend, the soldiers who were looking for and destroying icons on the orders of the Greek emperor Theophilus broke into the widow's house one night. Seeing the icon, one of them struck the face of the Mother of God with a spear. The blow fell on the right cheek of the Mother of God, and blood flowed from the wound.

The woman, not losing hope to save the shrine, begged the soldiers to leave the icon of the Mother of God until morning, promising them a reward for this. The selfish iconoclasts agreed, bewildered by the blood that appeared on the icon.

The woman took the icon to the sea and lowered the icon into the water to save it from destruction. In front of the eyes of the amazed widow and her son, the icon stood upright, face to the shore, and set off on a journey across the sea.

What happened to the widow in the future is unknown. As for her son, he became a monk of the Iversky Monastery on Holy Mount Athos. It was he who told the monks the story of the ancient icon, which became the sacred tradition of the monastery.

The bleeding wound remained on the face of the Mother of God, therefore the Iberian Mother of God is always depicted with a small wound on the face.

The news of the miraculous Iveron Icon of the Mother of God in Russia spread in the 17th century - Archimandrite of the Novospassky Monastery Nikon, the future Patriarch, asked to send the Archimandrite of the Iversky Athos Monastery Pachomius to Moscow, a list of the miraculous icon. The priest Iamblikh Romanov received the blessing to paint an icon of the Most Holy Theotokos for Russia. Before the start of the brethren of the Iversky Monastery - all 365 monks - from evening until dawn, they conducted a great prayer song and consecrated the water with the holy relics.

Holy water was poured over the miraculous icon of the Mother of God, and then a new board made of cypress wood was poured over, prepared for writing the icon. After the Divine Liturgy, the icon painter was given Holy water and particles of Holy relics - having mixed them with paints, he began to paint the icon of the Mother of God.