A miracle of Mary’s veil in Constantinople

The Orthodox Churches celebrate the Holy Protection of their Queen, the Mother of God and ever-Virgin Mary, on October 1 or October 28 (for the Greek Church). 

This feast, especially solemnized in the Slavic Churches, was instituted following a vision of  Saint Andrew the Fool for Christ on a day when a vigil was being celebrated in the Church of the Blachernae in Constantinople (Istanbul, Turkey). At the fourth hour of the night, the saint, immersed in prayer, raised his eyes to heaven and saw the Holy Mother of God standing above the congregation, covering the faithful with her veil (maphorion). 

Andrew confirmed the reality of his vision with his disciple Epiphanius, who had also been deemed worthy to contemplate the vision. The saint then rushed into the Sanctuary, opened the chest containing the relic of the precious veil of the Queen of the world, and, standing before the Holy Doors, spread it over the crowd. The veil was so large that it covered the entire assembly, but remained suspended in the air, supported by a mysterious force. 

The Mother of God then rose up into the sky, surrounded by a bright light, and disappeared, leaving the Christian people her Holy Veil as a guarantee of her benevolent protection. The Mother of God repeatedly showed this protection to the imperial city and, by analogy, to the whole Holy Church.

The Mary of Nazareth team