Icon of the Virgin Mary of Bethlehem. Orthodox icons. Icons of Saints

One of the most revered shrines of Christianity is the icon of the Virgin Mary of Bethlehem. Her story is not rich, but she is rather confused. Some historians believe that it was written in Rus. According to others, its creator was the Evangelist Luke. This saint wrote three similar icons - Tsaregradskaya, Ephesus and Jerusalem. The latter is called Bethlehem.

History of the icon of the Mother of God of Bethlehem

Many believe that Luke painted this image during the lifetime of the Virgin, and therefore he most accurately shows exactly how the Virgin Mary looked. First, the evangelist created one icon with the image of the Virgin, and then two more. He decided to show one of them to the Virgin Mary herself. The image pleased the Mother of God, and she blessed him, adding that "with all who will pray, looking at him," there will be grace. "

The Evangelist Luke wrote several icons on which the founders of Christianity are depicted reliably. It is believed that some images of the Savior, as well as the apostles Peter and Paul created by him and represent nothing more than ordinary portraits, and not actually invented icons.

In 463 the Scythians tried to seize the capital of Byzantium - Constantinople. In order to enlist the Lord's support, the icon of the Mother of God of Bethlehem was brought to this city by the wife of Emperor Theodosius, Evdokia. Thanks to her intercession, Constantinople resisted, and the Scythians retreated. It was the first miracle of the image. After that, he was placed in the Vlaherna church. Here the icon stayed very long - about 300 years. There is also a version that the image was transferred was not to the Valherna temple, but to one of the churches of the monastery of Odigon, from where its name came.

In 988, the image was transported to Korsun as a gift to Prince Vladimir, who transferred him to Novgorod's St. Sophia Cathedral. In this temple it was about 400 years old.

Legend of the icon

There is also an interesting tale about this icon. According to the legend, the icon was not just brought to Russia, but served as a protective relic for the daughter of the Byzantine emperor Constantine Porphyrogenous - Anna. This image was supposed to protect her on the way to the Chernigov region from Constantinople. Anna went there to her future husband. Then the icon and got its name "Odigitriya", which translates as "Guidebook".

Features of the image

An interesting fact is that the icon of the Virgin Mary of Bethlehem is the only image on which the Virgin smiles. Riza on the icon is made of the dress of Princess Elizabeth Romanova (1864-1918 gg.), Christian martyr. It is believed that it was she who gave this icon to Bethlehem. There is also a legend that the sick princess was healed by praying before this image.

The infant Christ is depicted on the icon holding in his hand one of the symbols of regal power - the power. His other hand is raised in a blessing gesture. The Virgin herself points to Christ. It is believed that in this way she tries to say that her son Jesus is the Way of Life.

Features of the images "Hodegetria"

All Catholic and Orthodox icons, on which the Mother of God points to Jesus, is usually called "Hodegetria." In all such images, the Virgin Mary is depicted sitting and holding the baby Christ. In doing so, he also holds something in his hand. Usually it is not a power, as on the Bethlehem icon (although it became the prototype of all the images of the Hodegetria), but a scroll or a book. This corresponds to the iconographic type of Christ as the Pantocrator, that is, the Almighty. Usually the Blessed Virgin is depicted in such a manner to the waist. However, there are icons of the Odigitria, on which the Virgin is written brawny or full-length. The main feature of the images of this iconographic type is that Christ is at the center of the composition, not his mother.

Where is the icon now?

The Bethlehem icon of the Mother of God, the meaning of which, as we found out - the worship of a divine baby, and not actually the woman who gave birth to it, is still in Bethlehem, in the basilica of the Nativity of Christ. You can pray to her before entering the cave where Jesus Christ himself was born. The image is placed in a wooden kiot and is on the right side of the wall. Every year, pilgrims from all over the world flock to Bethlehem in order to worship the miraculous image.

How to pray while standing in front of an icon?

In what cases can the Bethlehem icon of the Mother of God help ? Prayer is pronounced in case of illness of children. You can ask the Mother of God for the healing of adults. Of course, words must be spoken from the heart and with deep faith. Like any other image of the Virgin Mary, this icon can help those who do not, but would like to have children. There is no special prayer for the icon of Bethlehem. You can just ask her for intercession in your own words. Also in this case, and the usual prayer of the Blessed Virgin - "Virgin Virgin rejoice ..." is also suitable.

What is an akathist?

Akathist to the icon of the Mother of God or any other is a special hymn performed in the church in honor of Christ, the saints, etc. When you say it, you can not sit. The first Akathists celebrated the Most Holy Virgin. They were written in Greek and compiled according to certain rules. The structure of the akathist is very interesting: after the first stanza there are twelve large and twelve small ones.

The history of the appearance of Orthodox icons in the world and in Russia

As already mentioned, it is believed that the first images were ordinary portraits of the Savior, the Virgin, the apostles and saints. The oldest Christian icon is the Savior Not Made by Hands. According to legend, the painter Ananya decided to paint the image of the preaching Christ, when he taught the people in Jerusalem. However, he did absolutely nothing, because the Savior's expression was constantly changing. Seeing that the artist was upset, Christ allegedly asked for water, washed it and wiped his face with a towel, which miraculously showed his image.

The first icons were created to make it easier for people to communicate with Jesus, his mother and saints on a spiritual level. From Byzantium, the tradition of writing images spread throughout the world. Icons were understandable and close to people who spoke absolutely different languages. Ancient images were called the "Bible for the illiterate." According to these images, a medieval man, who can not read, could study the history of the life of Christ, his apostles and Christian saints.

In Russia, iconography also came from Byzantium after the adoption of Christianity in 988. Until the end of the seventeenth century it became the basis of Old Russian fine art. Fashion for secular paintings began to spread in our country only during the reign of Peter the Great.

Russian masters were trained by the Greeks invited to paint Russian Christian churches. The founder of the first purely national school of iconography was Metropolitan Illarion, who urged the clergy and parishioners to create their Slavic religious culture on the basis of Christianity that came from Byzantium. The first Russian icons of saints, apostles, the Savior and the Mother of God were monumental to Byzantine, were large and had a gloomy color.

Icons of Saints

Initially, Russian icons still repeated the themes of the Byzantine icons. However, over time, in Russia appeared and their saints. And with them, and icons, depicting them. One of the very first became the image of Boris and Gleb, Russian princes, killed by his brother Svyatopolk for Christian beliefs. There was this atrocity in 1015 in the course of internecine war. These princes became the first canonized Russian saints. Until now, Boris and Gleb are considered heavenly defenders of the rulers of the Russian land.

Miraculous icons of the Mother of God

In addition to Bethlehem, there are other icons of the Mother of God, in the presence of which miracles of all kinds take place. In fact, there are many such images. As an example, the miraculous icon of the Mother of God "The Execution of the Dead" can be cited. Once it belonged to one of the Russian noble families. The last owner of her was ruined, burned with grief and was already on the verge of death. However, praying with all sincerity to the icon, I received help. His daughters have successfully married. The grateful father gave the image to the local church.

It is impossible not to mention the icon of the Iberian Mother of God, the shrine of the Iberian monastery on Athos. This image represents one of the variants of the Odigitria. Before him there was simply a huge number of miraculous healings. The icon of the Mother of God "Wear My Sorrows", "Merciful", Tkhivinskaya and many others are also considered miraculous.

Mirotochenie icons of the Virgin

It is known that the images of the Virgin often melt. That is, on the surface of the icon, drops of an oily substance, similar to the sacred to the world used at baptism, appear by themselves. To explain this phenomenon, it is simply impossible to isolate resin from the properties of wood, since there is evidence of the myrrh content of even ordinary paper Xerocopies of images. Very often this phenomenon foreshadows any troubles. Especially if the icon exudes not a fragrant oil, but a red liquid, similar to blood, or transparent, similar to tears.

Icon of the Virgin Mary of Bethlehem and other similar images - not only the most important Christian shrines, but also works of art, which are of great historical value. Most of these images contain many secrets and mysteries. Perhaps someday historians will manage to solve them.