Icon of the Mother of God saves her people

Tradition holds that the icon of the Mother of God of Tikhvin is one of several icons of the Virgin Mary that was painted by St Luke the Evangelist. It was moved from Jerusalem to Constantinople in the 5^th century, to the Basilica of St Mary of Blachernae especially built to enshrine it. Unlike the icon of Our Lady of Smolensk, the one in Tikhvin is softer and more tender. Mary is slightly leaning towards the baby Jesus. Her feast day is on June 26th according to the Julian calendar or on July 9^th according to the Gregorian calendar.

In 1383, 70 years before the fall of Constantinople, the icon disappeared from the church of Blachernae and reappeared on the waters of Lake Ladoga, in the principality of Novgorod, Russia. Then it moved to Tikhvin where a monastery was eventually founded in honor of the Virgin of Tikhvin. At first, a wooden church was built on the site of the appearance of the icon, in honor of the Assumption of Mary. Then in 1560, by order of Tsar Ivan the Terrible, a monastery was built in Tikhvin, surrounded by a stonewall. At this time the miraculous icon was regularly transported to Moscow.

Devotion to the icon of the Mother of God in Tikhvin became more widespread in Russia after the events of 1613-1614. At that time of the Ingrian War, the Swedish troops, having taken the city of Novgorod, repeatedly tried to destroy the Tikhvin monastery, which was saved, according to tradition, by the intercession of the Mother of God. As the Swedish army approached, the monks decided to flee the monastery and take the miraculous icon with them, but they could not move it. The weaker ones remained in the monastery, praying for the protection of the Mother of God. This handful of defenders successfully repelled the attacks of the enemy forces, which were far superior to them!

Later, the icon was brought to Moscow and placed in the Dormition Cathedral. Then, at the request of the Novgorodians who had fought against the Swedes, it was sent to Novgorod and placed in the Novgorod St Sophia Cathedral.

The Marie de Nazareth Team

Adapted from: wikipedia

And from: Marie de Nazareth