Icons of Athos: Iveron (Goalkeeper, Portaitissa). Icon of the Iveron Mother of God: meaning and how the image helps
The Iveron Icon of the Mother of God helps all repentant sinners find the strength to repent. For such repentants, the icon shows the path to repentance. Before this Face, the relatives and friends of a sinner, a person who has deviated from the divine path, have offered prayers more than once.
Before this Divine Face they pray for healing from mental illnesses, and also ask for deliverance from bodily illnesses.
First of all, the miraculous Mother of God, having revealed her Iveron image to all humanity, is through it the Intercessor, the Guardian of earthly inheritances. She reliably protects the house where She is revered and where they offer their sincere prayers to Her.
It is not for nothing that another name for this image becomes “Portaitissa - Goalkeeper”. She miraculously warned the monks of Athos, as well as the whole world, all living things, about threatening events. If you have this image in your house, then you can pray in front of it for the preservation of your home from disasters. The Mother of God will protect him from fires, floods, attacks by thieves and robbers.
The Holy Iveron Icon of the Mother of God is one of the most ancient and most revered icons of the Mother of God today. This shrine is famous for its unique history. Church traditions indicate that it is one of those Faces that was written by the Apostle Luke. The icon-painting works of this apostle, which captured the appearance of the Most Pure One, according to various sources, number from three to up to seventy icons. All divine Faces were written with Her blessing. They are the most realistic, since they were written during the earthly life of the Lady.
According to church tradition, there are several Ecumenical Lots on earth - the inheritances of the Mother of God. All of them are, by Her grace, under special care. And the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God is in this case the crown: it combines four such Lots at once. This is Iversky, as well as Athos, Kievan Rus and, finally, Diveyevo. The extraordinary story in a nutshell looks like this.
Guardian of Iveria
Versions of the origin of the list of the Iveron icon and its meaning.
The Mother of God received her first inheritance on the day of Pentecost. Then the apostles received their appointment by lot. This lot determined which country they should go to for the purpose of preaching the Lord’s faith. Then the Most Pure One said: She wishes to take part in this. She then asked that She have a country according to the will of the Lord. They cast lots along with all the apostles. The Mother of God received Iveria (now Georgia is called this way). With joy, the Mother of God prepared to go there. At that time, an angel brought the gospel to Her. This gospel contained a request to remain for the Mother of God in Jerusalem until the Christian faith came to the then pagan Iberia.
The Intercessor of God sent the Apostle Andrew the First-Called to the Iberian land.
The tradition of the Church says: The Mother of God then ordered that such a board be brought to her, where icons were painted at that time. Then, having washed herself, she placed her luminous face on this board. And when she took it away, the image of Her with the Infant Christ was imprinted on the board. In the icon, the Iveron face was incredibly stern, almost stern. The Mother of God then told the holy Apostle Andrew that in a similar way She sends Herself to all of us in such an image. And in this form she will be the Guardian of Iveria, as well as all those who inhabit this country. She promised to pray for her Son for all of them. In Iberia by that time, a holy apostle named Simon the Canaanite was already preaching the holy faith of Christ.
Iveron Icon of the Mother of God
Not far from the Iveron monastery on the seashore, a miraculous spring has been preserved to this day, flowing at the moment when the Mother of God set foot on Athos soil; this place is called Klimentova pier. And it was to this place that the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God, now known to the whole world, miraculously, in a pillar of fire, appeared across the sea. The veneration of this image is evidenced by the fact that the Monk Nicodemus the Holy Mountain alone wrote four canons to the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God.
During the second period of iconoclasm (813-843), the widow, the owner of this icon, who lived near the city of Nicaea, saving the image from desecration, sent it floating on the waves with prayer. Several centuries have passed. And so, in 1004, he miraculously, in a pillar of light rising to the very heavens, arrived at the shores of Athos. The monks of the Iveron monastery, together with other Athonite monks, who hastened to the place of the miraculous phenomenon, tried to approach the icon in boats, but it moved away from them. Then they gathered in the main cathedral of the Iveron Monastery and began to ask the Mother of God to allow her to take away Her miraculous icon.
At the time described, the blessed elder Gabriel, originally from Iberia, labored near the Iveron monastery. He led an ascetic hermit's life and constantly said the Jesus Prayer. Day and night he studied the Holy Scriptures and the works of the Holy Fathers. The monk's only food was mountain herbs and spring water. This God-bearing elder had a vision of the Mother of God, commanding him to take Her image from the water and announce to the brethren of the Iveron Monastery that She was giving them Her icon.
The brothers of Iviron went to the sea in a religious procession, chanting the Most Holy Theotokos with church chants along the way. The Monk Gabriel entered the sea waters, and the icon began to quickly approach the shore. Then he walked towards her across the waves, as if on dry land, and the icon sailed straight into his hands. At the place where Elder Gabriel emerged from the water with the icon, a chapel was erected (now the park of the Most Holy Theotokos Portaitissa (Goalkeeper, Iveron)). This wonderful event took place on Tuesday of Bright Week.
The brethren of the Iveron monastery with great reverence transferred the found miraculous image to their monastery.
For three days in a row, the monks served All-Night Vigils and Divine Liturgies, thanking the Most Holy Theotokos for the mercy shown.
“Go to the monastery and tell the abbot and the monks so that they do not tempt Me. I did not appear to them so that they would protect Me, but so that I myself could be their guardian, and not only in the present, but also in the next century. And also tell them: while on this mountain the monks live in the fear of God and in reverence and work according to their strength to gain virtue, then let them have boldness and hope in the mercy of My Son and Master, for I asked Him for them as My inheritance , and He gave them to Me. Let My icon be to them as a sign of these words of Mine: as long as they contemplate it in their monastery, until then the mercy and grace of My Son and God will not fail them.”
Since then, the miraculous Iveron Icon began to be called the “Goalkeeper,” and some time later it was placed in a specially built church at the gates of the monastery.
Once, during a Saracen raid, one barbarian boldly hit the icon with his spear. At that same moment, blood flowed from the image, which can still be seen on it today. The robber repented and became a monk under the name of Damascus, but he called himself a Barbarian. The monk achieved holiness, and his iconographic image was preserved in the monastery.
Divine punishment befell the ships of the pirates who attacked the Iveron monastery: a storm broke out and sank all the ships except the ship of their leader. Repentant, he donated significant funds for the restoration of the monastery.
In 1651, Russian Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich gave Iviron the Monastery of St. Nicholas, which became the courtyard of this Athonite monastery. This was done in gratitude for the healing of the Tsar’s daughter, who received healing from the list of “Goalkeepers” brought by the inhabitants of the Iveron Monastery to Moscow.
Here is what the famous Russian pilgrim-pedestrian of the 18th century Vasily Grigorovich-Barsky writes about the “Goalkeeper”:
“In this beautiful church, at the inner gates of the monastery, in the iconostasis, instead of the usual Mother of God, there is a certain holy and miraculous icon, named by the ancient monks Portaitissa, that is, the Goalkeeper, extremely terribly transparent, with great feathers, holding Christ the Savior on her left hand , blackened on the face for many years, both completely showing the image, everything except the face is covered with silver-plated gilded clothing, and in addition, dotted with valuable stones and gold coins, from various kings, princes and noble boyars given for many of her miracles, where and I saw Russian tsars, queens and princesses, emperors and empresses, princes and princesses, gold coins and other gifts hung with my own eyes.”
The legend of the Iversky Monastery tells of a miracle performed by the Mother of God. One poor man asked to spend the night in Iviron, but the monk-goalkeeper demanded payment from him. The poor man had no money, and, dejected, he walked along the road to Kareya. Soon he met a mysterious Woman who gave him a gold coin. The poor man returned and gave the gold coin to the gatekeeper. The monks, paying attention to the antiquity of the coin, suspected the unfortunate man of theft. After his story about the Wife, they went to the “Goalkeeper” icon and saw that this coin was one of many donated to the Mother of God.
Due to the fact that the monks refused the traveler gratuitous hospitality, all the food in the Iveron Monastery spoiled.
The repentance of the monks was great. Since then, the vow of free hospitality has been strictly observed on the Holy Mountain. And on the site of the appearance of the Mother of God, a small temple was built.
The Russian saint Parthenius testified that during the Greek uprising of 1822, Turkish soldiers living in the monastery were unable to disturb the “Goalkeeper” dressed in precious vestments and decorated with many magnificent gifts. And a few years later, the monk serving at the icon was amazed to see a Woman dressed in black. She diligently swept the monastery.
It's time to thoroughly sweep the entire monastery. “He’s been standing unswept for so many years,” said the Wife and became invisible.
Soon the Sultan issued a decree for all soldiers to leave the Holy Mountain, although before that he had repeatedly threatened to destroy its monastery to the ground.
The famous singer Nektariy Vlah (1812-1890), invited as the best Athonite protopsalt to the patronal feast at the Iveron Monastery, was poisoned during a fraternal meal by other singers who were jealous of his skill.
Feeling unwell, Nektary went to the Church of the Most Holy Theotokos Goalkeeper and, turning to the Mother of God with fervent prayer, drank oil from the lamp of Her icon. The poison lost its potency, and Nectarius sang at the festival as well as he had ever sung in his life.
Before the First World War, the gentle expression of the face of the Infant Christ on the Iveron Icon changed and became formidable
A lot of historical data has been preserved about cases of healings of the sick, blind, lame and possessed by the Iveron Icon. Through prayers from the miraculous icon, the brethren of the Iveron Monastery repeatedly received miraculous help during times of shortage of flour, wine and oil.
In front of the Iveron Icon hangs a large unquenchable lamp, called the “Lamp of the Goalkeeper.” It has a wonderful property - without the slightest outside influence during the hours of worship, it sometimes begins to swing like a pendulum, warning of the approach of global disasters or some important events. Thus, before the Turkish attack on the island of Cyprus, the lamp was swayed so that oil flowed over its edges. In our days, such inexplicable swinging occurred before the American invasion of Iraq, before the earthquake in Armenia and many other events on a global scale.
The “Goalkeeper” herself never left Iviron; in response to requests from the laity, the monks sent lists of the miraculous image. The icon is taken out of the paraklis only three times a year, where it remains permanently:
On the eve of the Nativity of Christ, after the ninth hour, she is solemnly transferred by the brethren to the cathedral and remains there until the first Monday after the feast of the Council of John the Baptist;
From Holy Saturday to Monday of St. Thomas Week.
On Tuesday of Bright Week a solemn procession of the Cross takes place through the territory of the monastery;
On the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
According to Athonite legend, shortly before the Second Coming the Iveron Icon will leave Holy Mount Athos. This was announced by the Monk Nile the Myrrh-Streaming, who appeared several times in 1813-1819. monk Theophan.
Days of celebration of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God:
October 13 (October 26) - transfer in 1648 to Moscow of the list of icons sent to Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich from Athos;
Video:
Procession with the Iveron Icon (2010)
Prayer canon to the icon of the Mother of God “Goalkeeper” (Iverskaya) performed by the brethren of the Iversky Monastery
Photo gallery: Celebration of the Iveron Icon of the Blessed Virgin Mary on Bright Week (2012)
...We are all witnesses to a significant event - the Iveron image of the Most Holy Theotokos has again found its historical place in the very center of the Mother See of Moscow, in the recreated Iveron Chapel at the Resurrection Gate. With great trepidation and reverence, our ancestors called Rus' the House of the Mother of God. And this was not prideful exaltation. In these words, the believing Russian people expressed their humble gratitude to the Queen of heaven and earth for Her great and rich mercies, testified about them before other nations and expressed their love for the One who repeatedly came to their aid in difficult moments... Now celebrating a new meeting Iveron Icon of the Mother of God, we firmly believe that, as in times past, the Most Holy Mother of God, Who many times demonstrated Her intercession and mercy in Her countless icons, will not forsake our city, our Russian country and its people in the future with Her Protection.
Patriarch Alexy II
According to the legend of Holy Mount Athos, the image of the Mother of God, known as the Iveron Icon, first showed its miracles during the reign of the Greek Emperor Theophilus (IX century), during the times of fierce iconoclastic persecutions. The reliable history of this image dates back to the 11th century, when the monks of the Athos Iveron monastery saw a pillar of fire reaching to the sky on the surface of the sea and, amazed, repeated only one thing: “Lord, have mercy!” Monks from all the neighboring monasteries came to the sea and, through fervent prayer, saw that this pillar stood over the icon of the Mother of God. But the closer the brethren came to the waters of the sea, the further the icon moved away from them. Then they gathered in the temple and with tears prayed to the Lord to allow them to find a new shrine.
At that time, Elder Gabriel was asceticizing in the Iveron monastery, living a strict life and having a childishly simple disposition. In the summer he carried out the feat of silence on the top of an impregnable rock, in the winter he went to the brethren; dressed in a hair shirt, eating only vegetables and water, he looked like an earthly angel, as befits those who have assumed the rank of angel. It was to him that the Lady, illuminated by a wondrous heavenly light, appeared in a dream and commanded: “Tell the abbot and the brethren that I want to give them My icon, My protection and help; then go into the sea - walk with faith straight along the waves, and then everyone will know My love and favor towards your abode.”
The elder conveyed his dream to the abbot, and the next morning the monks with censers and lamps went to the shore. Accompanied by the prayerful singing of the brethren, Gabriel stepped onto the water and, supported by that faith that moves mountains, miraculously walked across the waves as if on dry land and took the holy icon into his hands.
The monks greeted her with jubilation on the shore, performing prayers before the image for three days and three nights, and then carried her into the cathedral church, where they placed her in the altar.
The next day, the monk, who was lighting the lamps in the temple, did not find the icon in this place. She hung over the gates of the monastery. The image was brought into the temple, but the next morning the same thing happened again.
And again there was a vision for Elder Gabriel, and the Lady commanded him to announce to the brethren: “I don’t want to be protected by you, but I myself want to be your Guardian not only in earthly, but also in heavenly life. I asked the Lord for mercy for you, and as long as you see My icon in your monastery, until then the grace of My Son to you will not fail.”
In grateful joy, the monks built a temple to the glory of the Most Pure One above the gates of their monastery and placed an icon in it. The original image remains here to this day. This icon is called “Portaitissa” - that is, “Goalkeeper”, or “Gatekeeper”; after the place of the appearance in the Iveron monastery, it is called Iveron. The wondrous symbol associated with the name of the icon is expressed in the akathist: “Rejoice, good Goalkeeper, who opens the doors of heaven to the faithful!”
Many legends are associated with this icon. One day, a certain robber struck her with a sword, and then blood, hitherto visible on the icon, burst out from the face of the Mother of God. The robber repented and ended his life among the brethren of the Iveron monastery, being in the feat of strict fasting and prayer.
Many other miracles were revealed from the Iveron Icon. And now, from afar, from the waves of the sea, Russian pilgrims look at the walls of the monastery, for the Charter of the Holy Mountain strictly prohibits idle guests from setting foot on its land, and a woman’s foot has not touched it for almost a thousand years.
For centuries, the great Athonite elders atone for the sins of our vain and lost world. Because, perhaps, the Lord also tolerates us, sinners and weak ones, because such great ascetics still remain in our world, saving all Orthodox Christians with their feat of prayer.
Due to the great love of the Russian people for the Iveron Icon, back in the middle of the 17th century, several revered copies of it were brought to Russia, of which the most famous were the image in the Iveron Valdai Monastery and the image in the Moscow chapel at the Resurrection Gate of Kitay-Gorod, written at the request of the Patriarch of Moscow to Archimandrite Pachomius of Athonite. And when in 1648 three monks from Svyatogorsk presented the finished image to Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, they also attached a written narrative to it:
“When Pachomius arrived at our monastery, having gathered all his brethren, 365 brothers, they performed a great prayer service from evening until daylight and blessed the water with holy relics; they poured holy water over the miraculous icon of the Most Holy Theotokos, the Old Portaitskaya (Goalkeeper) and collected that holy water in a great basin; having collected, the packs poured over a new board, all made of cypress, and again collected that holy water into a basin; and then they served the Divine Liturgy with great faith, and after the holy liturgy they gave that holy water and holy relics to the icon painter... And that newly painted icon differs in no way from the first icon, neither in length, nor in width, nor in face - word for word it is new, just like the old "
This very list, known as the Moscow Iveron Icon, was met on October 13, 1648 at the Resurrection Gate by the Tsar and his family, the Patriarch and a great multitude of Orthodox people. The image was placed on the gate, which since then began to be called Iveron. Then, in 1669, they moved it to a wooden chapel, and from 1791 the miraculous one remained in a stone chapel with a dome as blue as the sky and dotted with golden stars and two golden figures of the apostles at the doors.
Iverskaya became famous for many miracles and healings, which were recorded in a special book. An endless stream of Muscovites and guests of the Mother See came to her in order to pray and receive the blessing of the Most Pure One for their labors. Pious kings and queens, entering the white stone, entered the Iverskaya Chapel before the Kremlin. As old Muscovites recalled, at night the holy icon was taken from house to house in a closed carriage drawn by six horses, accompanied by the clergy. A horseman with a torch galloped ahead. The coachmen sat on the box without hats, and in severe frost they tied scarves around their heads.
The writer of everyday life of Old Moscow piety, Ivan Sergeevich Shmelev, recalled how earnestly they prepared in Zamoskvoretsk houses for such a meeting with the miraculous:
“Our yard seems new to me - light, pink with sand, cheerful. I am glad that the Queen of Heaven will be pleased with us. Of course, She knows everything: that there is a garbage dump under our tent, and the same puddle, and the garbage was covered with sand; but still She is pleased that our place has become clean and beautiful and that all this is for Her. And everyone thinks so.<…>
You can see the leading pair of six, at a calm trot, with an outrigger on the left... a blue wide carriage. The head of a monk looks out of the door. It's vaguely golden in the depths.<…>
Under a light, as if airy, canopy made of wood transformed into air, shining in the lights and the sun, as if in flowing gold, in a crown of diamonds and pearls, bowed mournfully over the Baby, the Queen of Heaven.<…>
All of Her is light, and everything changed with Her and became a temple.<…>The people guard the sacred carriage. On its doors are written royal crowns, gold. Old women are baptized on Her carriage, on horses; Her horses are gentle, completely holy.”
In 1929, the Iverskaya Chapel was closed, and in 1934 it was completely demolished, along with the Resurrection Gate, in order to disturb the majestic peace of the Kremlin on parade days with the roar of armored monsters. It was thought by many that the miraculous one herself had disappeared. That list, which replaced Iverskaya while she was visiting the houses of Muscovites, ended up in the Zamoskvoretsky Church of St. Nicholas in Kuznetsy, where it remains in the icon case in front of the right choir of the Sergius chapel.
Iverskaya itself, as pious parishioners believe, was moved to the choir of the northern aisle of the Church of the Resurrection in Sokolniki. The authenticity of this image was repeatedly confirmed by Orthodox Moscow old-timers; As for the doubts, they are to blame for the heretics-renovationists, who later built their temple in this temple and thus dared to cast a shadow on the miraculous one.
However, everything returns to normal. On November 4, 1994, His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II, after the Divine Liturgy in the newly created Kazan Cathedral on Red Square, consecrated the foundation stone of the Iveron Chapel. Thus providentially the fates of two Mother of God icons, Iveron and Kazan, revered by all Russia, intersected, the wondrous multiplication of images of which only added to their grace-filled power.
In September 1995, His Holiness the Patriarch turned to the rector of Athos Iveron, Archimandrite Vasily, with a request to write a new list for the all-Russian flock from “our common Intercessor, Our Lady of the Goalkeeper.” With the fervent prayers of the brethren of the Holy Mountain, such an image was painted in the shortest possible time by the pious monk Luke from the Xenophon Monastery of Athos.
On October 25, 1995, on the eve of the celebration of the Iveron Icon, a Greek plane delivered a new list to Moscow, accompanied by twelve inhabitants of the Holy Mountain, led by Archimandrite Vasily. With joy and reverence, Muscovites greeted the newly found shrine at the entrance to the Epiphany Patriarchal Cathedral, bringing it under the arches of the temple for public worship to the ringing of bells and the singing of the troparion. All night in front of Iverskaya, prayer services were continuously performed and an akathist was read.
The next day, October 26 (13th Old Style), a procession with the Iveron Icon passed along Nikolskaya Street to the Kazan Cathedral for the beginning of the Divine Liturgy, which was led by His Holiness the Patriarch. And at about one o'clock in the afternoon the holy icon was carried through the Resurrection Gate, restored to its former splendor, to the Iveron Chapel, consecrated by the patriarch in the co-service of a host of hierarchs and clergy.
This significant day marked the beginning of an inexhaustible flow of Orthodox Christians to the revered icon of our Intercessor and Guardian, not only in the present, but also in the future eternal life.
As the great Athonite ascetic, Elder Paisius the Svyatogorets, said, “there are still people of God, people of prayer, and the Good God tolerates us and will put everything in order again... The Good God will arrange everything in the best way, but a lot of patience and attention is needed... What is happening now , will not last long. God will take the broom! In 1860, there were many Turkish troops on the Holy Mountain, and therefore for some time there was not a single monk left in the Iveron monastery. The fathers left... Only one monk came from afar to light lamps and sweep. Both inside and outside the monastery were full of armed Turks, and this poor thing, sweeping, said: “Mother of God! What will it be?” One day, praying with pain to the Mother of God, he sees a Woman approaching him, her face glowing and shining. It was the Mother of God. She takes the broom from his hand and says: “You don’t know how to sweep well, I’ll sweep it myself.” And she began to sweep, and then disappeared inside the altar. Three days later all the Turks left! The Mother of God kicked them out... God will eventually put everything in its place, but each of us will give an answer for what he did in these difficult years with his prayer, kindness... The current situation can only be resisted spiritually, and not in a worldly way.”
Troparion , voice 1
From Your holy icon, O Lady Theotokos, healing and healing are given abundantly to those who come to her with faith and love. Thus, visit my weakness and have mercy on my soul, O Good One, and heal my body with Your grace, O Most Pure One.
Prayer
O Most Holy Virgin, Mother of the Lord, Queen of heaven and earth! Hear the much-painful sighing of our souls, look down from Thy holy height upon us, who with faith and love worship Thy most pure image. Behold, immersed in sins and overwhelmed by sorrows, looking at Your image, as if You were alive and living with us, we offer our humble prayers. Imams have no other help, no other intercession, no consolation except You, O Mother of all who mourn and are burdened! Help us, the weak, satisfy our sorrow, guide us, the erring, on the right path, heal and save the hopeless, grant us the rest of our lives to spend in peace and silence, grant us a Christian death and appear to us at the Last Judgment of Your Son, merciful Intercessor, yes We always sing, magnify and glorify Thee, as the good Intercessor of the Christian race, with all those who have pleased God. Amen.
Prayer that May in the chapel of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God,
before Her image at a prayer service
O Most Holy Lady Lady Theotokos! Accept our unworthy prayer, and save us from the slander of evil people and from sudden death, and grant us repentance before the end. Have mercy on our prayer and grant joy instead of sorrow. And deliver us, Lady, from all misfortune and adversity, sorrow and illness, and from all evil. And grant us, Thy sinful servants, to the right hand at the Second Coming of Thy Son, Christ our God, and heirs of the existence of the Kingdom of Heaven and eternal life with all the saints throughout the endless ages of ages. Amen.
Iveron Icon, days of remembrance:
February 25 (February 12, old style) - on this day the copy of the Iveron Icon was transferred to the monastery in Valdai. This list was written by an Athos icon painter specifically for the Iveron Monastery, built in Valdai in the exact likeness of the Athos Monastery.
May 6 (April 25, old style) - the second acquisition of the icon list. In 2012, the icon was solemnly transferred to the Russian Orthodox Church and installed in its place in the Novodevichy Convent, where it had been located since 1648. During the years of Soviet power, after the closure of the monastery, the shrine was in the collections of the State Historical Museum.
October 26 (October 13, old style) is the day of the solemn meeting when the Athos Iveron Icon appeared in Moscow in 1648
On Tuesday of Holy Week- according to legend, it was on Tuesday of Bright Week that the monks of the Iveron Monastery saw an icon of the Mother of God floating towards them on the water.
WHAT DO THEY PRAY TO THE MOTHER OF GOD THROUGH HER IMAGE OF THE IVERIAN ICON
The second name of this icon of the Mother of God is the Goalkeeper (Portaitissa). She, like a real guardian, stands to protect you and your home and protects you from evil actions and destructive thoughts.
The Mother of God through the Iveron image of the present Mothers is the Intercessor of our home from various disasters - from robbery, floods, fires, etc.
The Iveron icon helps in healing mental and physical illnesses; it shows sinners the path to repentance.
It must be remembered that icons or saints do not “specialize” in any specific areas. It will be correct when a person turns with faith in the power of God, and not in the power of this icon, this saint or prayer.
And .
THE HISTORY OF THE DISCOVERY OF THE IVERIAN ICON
After the first Ecumenical Council, at which, thanks also to the adherents of the Arian heresy, they received a worthy rebuff and a calm time finally came in the Christian world. But in the 9th century a new misfortune came - fighters against Orthodox images appeared, they simply destroyed the icons.
In those years, in the region of Nicaea (now Turkey) there lived a family of Orthodox Christians, a widow and her teenage son. The woman was not poor and next to her house she erected a temple in which there was an ancient icon of the Mother of God. One day, iconoclast troublemakers came to this church and began to demand money from the woman. She told them that now she did not have that amount; upon hearing this answer, one of the attackers struck the icon on the face of the Mother of God with a sword. Suddenly blood flowed down the icon, as if from a living body.
« Heroes“They were frightened by what they saw and left the temple, but leaving it, they warned that they would return for the money the next day.
At night, the widow and her son took the damaged icon, went to the seashore and, after reading a prayer, laid it on the water. Suddenly the icon stood upright and floated from the shore into the open sea. Mother and son, amazed at what was happening, looked at this miracle. After everything that happened, they were forced to leave their home. The son went to Thessaloniki, then to Mount Athos to the Iveron Monastery, where he took monastic vows and became a monk.
He told the story of such an unusual rescue of the image of the Mother of God, whose icon miraculously went into the sea.
Once, being near the monastery gates, not far from the water, the elders saw a pillar of fire rising above the sea. This sight frightened them. They began to pray to the Lord, but the vision did not disappear, and by night it became even brighter.
Finally, the monks saw an icon of the Mother of God floating in the sea. They tried to get it, but when they began to approach it, the icon moved away from them.
After several unsuccessful attempts, the monks got together and began to pray to the Lord for help in finding the icon. God heard their prayers, and chose the monk Gabriel, who is now known as Gabriel the Holy Mountain, as the person who would deliver the shrine to the Iveron monastery. This monk was a real hermit, spending all his time in prayers to the Lord. That day he was not in the monastery, since in the summer he went to pray in the mountains and only with the onset of cold weather did he return to the monastery.
One day, while he was sleeping, Gabriel saw the appearance of the Mother of God Herself. The Mother of God commanded him to leave his hermitage, return to the monastery, go to the abbot and inform him that the Queen of Heaven wants to give Gabriel Her icon, which came to them by sea. But for this, he must, like Jesus Christ, without fear, with faith, walk on the surface of the water, take the icon, and then take it to the monastery, which She will now protect.
He fulfilled everything exactly according to the command of the Mother of God. Having stepped onto the water, Gabriel walked along the surface, and then the icon itself began to approach the monk, he took it in his arms and carried it to the shore. After the icon was found, the image of the Mother of God was placed on the holy altar, and a service was continuously held in front of it for three days. But suddenly the icon was gone, it disappeared, they rushed to look for it, and found it above the monastery gates. The monks again placed the icon on the altar, and again, inexplicably, it ended up above the gate. Several times the icon " traveled" from place to place.
The Most Pure One again appeared in a dream to the hermit Gabriel and ordered him to go to the monastery again and inform everyone that this icon was not sent for the monks to guard it, but on the contrary - now the Mother of God herself, through her icon, will guard Iveron and Her entire second destiny is Athos.
Since then, this icon has received the name Portaitissa, which translated from Greek means Goalkeeper.
The Iverskaya monastery is considered the house where this icon. On the territory of the monastery a temple was erected in the name of Portaitissa, the patroness of Athos.
The icon is illuminated by an unquenchable lamp, which is called “ Goalkeeper's Lamp».
Sometimes during the hours of worship, without any external influence, the lamp swings like a pendulum, thus warning of the proximity of such great disasters as earthquakes, epidemics, and attacks from enemies.
Residents of Athos said that before the Turks attacked Cyprus, the lamp swayed so much that even the oil spilled over the edge, but the Protectress, through Her icon, did not allow Athos to be captured.
In modern times, such incomprehensible swaying of the lamp began before the Americans arrived in Iraq, before the earthquake in Spitak, and before other phenomena. This is how the Iveron Icon happened to inform people about upcoming events on a planetary scale.
The Guardian and Defender of Iveron, the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God always showed her help to the brethren; when famine occurred, She sent the abbot of the monastery to the barn, where he found a large amount of flour. The enemies did not attack Athos, the fires that broke out went out on their own, and there were always food supplies in the bins.
Unrepentant sinners cannot pass through the gates of Iveron.
In 422, according to legend, the daughter of Tsar Theodosius wanted to visit the monastery to see the shrines, but by the voice of the Mother of God she was forbidden to do so.
Since then, by order of the Mother of God, who protects the peace and tranquility of monastics, Athos has been inaccessible to women for 1,700 years.
In Russia there are two main lists of this icon. One of them is located in the church of the Patriarchal Metochion in Peredelkino. They say that these lists were made with paint, which was rubbed with holy water, taken from an authentic icon from New Athos.
GREATNESS
We magnify You, Most Holy Virgin, and honor Your holy image, through which you heal our illnesses and raise our souls to God.
VIDEO - ICON OF THE MOTHER OF GOD OF IVERSKAYA
When we find ourselves in difficult life situations, we hope we hope for Heaven's help. Most often we turn our gaze to the patroness of all people and their intercessor before the Almighty - Mother of God.
We will always find her image to the left of the royal doors in any Orthodox church. A special place among the icons of the Most Holy Theotokos is occupied by her Iveron Icon. This is one of the most widespread, most revered and famous shrines of Orthodoxy.
The face of the Most Pure Virgin saves even those who do not belong to the Orthodox faith, so great is his saving power. The strength that it draws from its almost two thousand years of history.
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Iveron icon - origins
Isn't that what source of this power, that the icon was born from the brush of the Apostle and Evangelist Luke during the earthly life of the Mother of God? That is, he created her image, as they say now, from life. Tradition attributes to him the creation of up to seventy icons of the Most Pure One. It must be assumed that the Apostle’s creations pleased the Most Holy Virgin, who, contemplating them, said: the one born of her and her mercy will be with these icons.
Mediterranean voyage
The next mention of our icon appears at the time of iconoclasm, when one of the commandments of the Old Testament - not to create an idol for yourself, as well as a reflection of what is above - becomes dominant in the politics of Byzantium. Its then ruler, Emperor Theophilus, sent his troops to destroy the icons.
One of them broke into the house of a wealthy widow in the Asia Minor city of Nicaea, where (apparently, the neighbors reported) the image of the Virgin Mary was preserved. The mistress of the house and her son especially revered the icon, before which they bowed daily. The widow begged the soldiers to leave the icon with her until the next morning. One of them, leaving the house, gloatingly threw a spear at the holy face, and a miracle happened: blood flowed from the wound made by the tip.
The shocked guards hurriedly left the house, and the mother and son, having received a sign from above, took their shrine to the seashore and released it to the waves. An amazing thing happened: the icon did not lie flat on the surface of the water, but stood upright, and a column of light rose above it. The rescuers understood: the image of the Virgin Mary was safe. History is silent about the further fate of the Nicene woman, but her son allegedly fled to Mount Athos and became a monk of the Iveron Monastery, where the image of the Blessed Virgin, saved by him, would later arrive after his Mediterranean voyage.
Finding names
The Iversky Monastery grew up at the end of the 10th century on the Holy Mountain with funds from the Georgian royal house of Bagration. That's why named Iversky(In those days, present-day Georgia was called Iberia). It was the novices of this monastery who were lucky enough to see a pillar of fire in the sea one April night. Approaching it, they noticed an icon of the Virgin Mary at its base. But it was impossible to take her from the sea: as soon as the monks swam to her, she retreated into the sea.
According to legend, on the night of Tuesday of Bright Week, one of the monks - The Queen of Heaven appeared to Saint Gabriel and She said that the icon had been sent to the monastery by her grace, and he should go on the waves and bring the image to the monastery. This was done after morning prayer. Called Iverskaya, the icon was placed in the main church of the monastery. However, the next morning she was not there. We found an image on the gate of the monastery.
This was repeated for several days, until the Mother of God appeared to Saint Gabriel again. She explained that she did not want to be protected; on the contrary, she herself wanted to be the keeper of the monastery. The brethren erected a gate church, in which the image remains to this day. And the icon received a second name - Portaitis, that is, the Goalkeeper.
Our land learned about the miraculous icon in the 12th century. The then primate of the Novospassky Moscow monastery Tikhon and the future Russian patriarch asked the leadership of the Iveron monastery to fulfill the list of the Goalkeeper for the Orthodox of Rus'. An exact copy of the icon arrived in Moscow on October 26 (13 old style) 1648. She was solemnly greeted with prayer by the royal family, clergy, and hundreds of lay people.
Twenty years later, the image was placed at the Resurrection Gate of Kitay-Gorod under a wooden canopy, and later a chapel was erected in its place. After the Bolsheviks came to power, the chapel, and with it the gate, was demolished so as not to interfere with the movement of military equipment to parades. It seemed that the Iveron image also disappeared. But according to some reports, he waited out the atheistic timelessness in the Church of the Resurrection of Sokolnikov.
It happened October 25, 1995. On that day, a Greek plane delivered to the Russian capital a new list, completed on the Holy Mountain at the request of Patriarch Alexy II. And everything was repeated all over again: the icon was placed in a newly rebuilt chapel near the restored Resurrection Gate.
Today, images of the Iveron Mother of God are kept in many monasteries and churches in our country and its neighbors. In Moscow alone there are more than ten such monasteries. The most revered icons to which our compatriots come to pray for help from the Goalkeeper include:
- List of works by the icon painter of the Iveron Monastery on Mount Athos Iamblichus (1648) - the first copy from the original to arrive in Russia;
- Icon of the Valdai Iversky Monastery (1656) - an exact copy from the Athos prototype;
- Icon in the chapel, called Iverskaya, in Moscow (XVII century);
- Image in the Molchansk Sophronium Hermitage (XVII–XVIII centuries). This is the Kursk diocese;
- Icon kept in the New Jerusalem Monastery in the Moscow region (XVII century);
- Nizhny Novgorod list (1672);
- Icon in the Smolensk Monastery (XVII century);
- An image in the Moscow church on Ordynka (1792);
- Mozdok icon. According to some sources, it was given by Queen Tamara to the Ossetians for their devotion to Christian values;
- Icon in the Sukhotinsky convent in Tambov (1855);
- A copy in Kinovia of the bishop's house in Saratov;
- An image in the church of the bishop's house in Chisinau (1859).
Orthodox churches consecrated in honor of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God today exist in Russia, China, Lithuania, Tajikistan, and Ukraine.
How does an image help?
Many generations of inhabitants of the Holy Mountain experienced the magical influence of the image of the Goalkeeper. They argue convincingly that the Virgin Mary of Iveron helps:
- heal the sick;
- overcome illnesses of body and soul;
- replenish supplies;
- get rid of enemy raids;
- warns of disasters.
They say that the unquenchable oil lamp in front of the Face suddenly begins to sway without any external influence. Usually this is a sign of the approach of some tragic event.
When in the 10th century the troops of the Persian king Amir besieged the monastery, the monks began to ask the Mother of God in front of her image for help. Suddenly a storm came and destroyed the enemy ships. Only the commander survived. Struck by the wonder of divine wrath, he repented, asked forgiveness for his sins, and then became one of the benefactors of the monastery.
Similar miracles happen today. For example, when Turkish troops invaded Cyprus in 1974, the lamp swayed so much that oil even spilled out of it. Movements were also seen before the Spitak earthquake in Armenia in 1988, the US and allied military operation against Iraq undertaken in 2003 to overthrow the government of Saddam Hussein.
Goalkeepers cry out to the bright image:
- for consolation in troubles;
- in case of fires and other disasters;
- to increase the fertility of the earth;
- to overcome harmful desires;
- asking for intercession for themselves, their loved ones and even their enemies.
This icon is of great importance for those who have stumbled in life and sinned. She helps them find the courage to sincerely repent of what they have done, give up harmful desires and return to a pious life. The Iveron Mother of God guards the hearth. She is known as the patroness of all women, their helper and intercessor before the Almighty.
The tragic fate of a Montreal icon
The so-called Montreal list of the Iveron Mother of God has a mysterious history. It was performed on the Holy Mountain in 1981 and presented to a Canadian expert in the field of icon painting - Chilean by birth Joseph Muñoz-Cortez. Starting from November 24, 1982, the icon streamed myrrh for 15 years. Myrrh exuded the scent of roses and had a strong healing ability. It was sent on cotton wool all over the world. The miraculous moisture helped get rid of even the most severe diseases. Some photographs of the icon also streamed myrrh. In the fall of 1997, Joseph Muñoz-Cortez was killed on Mount Athos, and the Montreal Icon went missing.
How to refer to the image?
In the prayer read at the prayer service before the Iveron icon in its chapel, they ask the Mother of God to protect her from the slander of unkind people and unexpected death, to give repentance before death and joy instead of sadness. They ask to be delivered from all kinds of troubles and misfortunes, sorrows and sorrows, from all kinds of evil. Those standing in front of the icon hope to earn the right to stand at the right hand of her son Jesus Christ and inherit eternal life in the Kingdom of Heaven with all the saints.
In another prayer, parishioners ask the Mother of God to pay attention to them from her holy height, because there is no other help, no other intercession and consolation for them except her. They ask to satisfy them, the weak, their sorrows, to guide them on the right path, to heal their painful hearts, to save the hopeless, to grant them life in peace and repentance and a Christian death. They also ask you to become their merciful intercessor at the Last Judgment.
Days of veneration of the icon
The Orthodox Church has established days on which we especially worship the Light Image. This:
- Every year on Tuesday after Easter(moving celebration) - finding the prototype in the sea near Mount Athos;
- 25 February- arrival of a copy of the icon at the Valdai Monastery in 1656;
- October 26- celebrations on the occasion of the arrival in Moscow of a list of icons from Mount Athos in 1648);
- the 6th of May- new acquisition of the oldest Moscow list. On this day in 2012, the Historical Museum returned it to the Russian Orthodox Church.
Keep this image in your home. The Mother of God will protect him from robbers, fires, floods and other misfortunes. If you sincerely ask with a pure heart, the icon of the Iveron Mother of God will definitely help.
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