Prayer to the Covering (Domodedovo) Icon of the Mother of God
O Most Holy Virgin Theotokos, Compassionate Mother of all Christians, especially those who mourn, are persecuted, and are possessed by various ailments! I, as I am poor and wretched in soul and body, appearing before Your holy image, with tears and touchingly ask for Your gracious alms. There is nothing good and good in me, - I am completely surrounded by infirmities, poverty and squalor, - my feet do not have shoes, so that I can hasten to holy and godly deeds; My hands are dirty from the many iniquities I have committed; my eyes are downcast from a bad conscience. They will not be able to look at the splendor of Your beauty, revealed to us in Your miraculous image, “The Covering One.” My whole face is darkened and dotted with the stamp of my countless vices and sins. I have neither saving faith, nor comforting hope, nor blissful love; I am like a putrefactive vessel, filled with all kinds of filth: pride, selfishness, arrogance, vanity, anger, irritability, malice, resentment, ill will, envy, jealousy, condemnation, murmuring, slander, idle talk, deceit, flattery, deception, hypocrisy, despondency, impatience, cowardice, incontinence of mental and physical feelings, addiction, carnality, all voluptuousness and other numerous passions. And such is my spiritual misery, the same is physical - illnesses and misfortunes have held me and my whole life, like a reed shaken by the wind, full of inconstancy, fear and all kinds of danger. According to the verb of the holy apostle: troubles are the spirits of wickedness in high places; troubles from people who hate, offend and are at enmity with me; troubles from animals, livestock and the creeping things of the earth; troubles from the elements of the world - lightning, fire, water, harmful air, cold, famine; troubles from the many infirmities and diseases of my body; troubles on the way and at home; troubles day and night. Who will support me, who will save me, who will deliver me from my enemies, who will guide me to virtue, who will heal my illnesses, who will console, repose, enlighten, instruct, save and have mercy if not You, Most Holy Mother, my All-Good Intercessor and Patroness! You gather my mind, scattered throughout the world, and cleanse my thoughts from all filth; feelings, poisoned by all kinds of evil, refresh; Strengthen my flabby will for all good things and deliver me from destructive lack of will; Fill your heart with passions of freedom and holy love for God and your neighbors; Rearrange my entire inner temple and make it a comfortable dwelling for the Holy Spirit. Do not leave me, Most Merciful Lady, in my many-sorrowful physical life: consume illness; visible and invisible enemies are raging; Destroy evil circumstances; push away the fear that comes from the spirits of evil and people who want to destroy me; Grant me everything I need and need, send me good spirits. May I, renewed, purified, and comforted by You, my Most Holy Queen, glorify the Holy Trinity, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit and Your wondrous care for me, now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.
No one knows exactly how many images of the Blessed Virgin Mary were written. In the month book of the Moscow Patriarchate, 295 names are mentioned. And the number of revered images throughout the Orthodox world reaches seven hundred. We are familiar and recognizable to many icons of the Mother of God: Vladimir, Kazan, Iveron and others. But there are many icons that have unusual iconography, and are simply rare. We will consider some of them. Protector of the orphaned and abandoned.
The image seems to tell us that every child needs the protection and care of a loving mother, who is the main person in his life. Many children are deprived of parental love, and then their mother is replaced by the Queen of Heaven herself, who is always ready to warm and support the unfortunate child.
Cup of patience.
In 2000 in Russia, in the Church of the Martyr John the Warrior (Novokuznetsk, Siberia), the outlines of the Virgin Mary with the Child in her arms miraculously appeared on the window glass. An icon was subsequently painted from this image and called the “Cup of Patience.”
Ravensbruck.
An icon revered in the Russian Orthodox Church and the Russian Greek Catholic Church, depicting the Mother of God hugging the baby or youth Christ, already crucified on the Cross. It was first created using the embroidery technique by the Venerable Martyr Mother Maria in the Ravensbrück concentration camp in 1945, hence the name.
The Most Bright Star.
The Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos “The Blessed Star” is a rather unusual and very rare image in the entire iconography of the Mother of God. According to Christian chronicles, this icon was created at the turn of the 17th - 18th centuries. It was at this time that she was found in one of the churches in the city of Murom. At the feet of the Mother of God are the Murom saints. In princely robes - Constantine, Mikhail, Theodore, in monastic robes - Peter, Fevronia and Juliana.
Panagia Tu Haru.
The image is located in Greece, in one of the most modest Byzantine churches, built in Lipsus in 1600 by monks from the island of Patmos. They called this image “The Mother of God of Death” because of the Most Holy Theotokos depicted on it, holding in her hands not the Child Christ, but the Cross with the Savior crucified on it. This is a unique image depicting the cry of a mother and Her martyrdom, which She had to endure, taking Her dead child into Her hands after an incredibly cruel and shameful torment. According to testimonies, in April 1943, a young girl prayed in front of this icon and received healing. In gratitude, she placed a simple bouquet of lilies in the icon. Soon the lilies withered, but remained on the icon. A year later, the lilies suddenly bloomed and fragrant again. Since then, this miracle has been repeated annually on the feast day of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Sedative.
Holy Mount Athos shines with its miraculous icons, like the sky with stars that shine in the darkness of the night. One of these luminaries leading us to salvation is the image of the Mother of God “The Calmifier”, which since ancient times has been kept in the depths of Holy Athos and hidden from the eyes of idle tourists. This image is revealed only to true admirers of the Mother of God and awaits its time of appearing to the world in recent times in order to reassure the faithful.
Gracious Sky or Sunny.
The icon has a deep mystical meaning. On it, the Mother of God is depicted standing in the sky with the Child of God in her arms inside a shining solar circle. In the pre-Synodal period, the icon was called the “Solar Mother of God.” This name was preserved among the Old Believers. The “Blessed Heaven” icon depicts the Mother of God not as she appeared in her earthly existence or miraculous signs, but represents the Most Pure One as she would appear at the end of the world. “The Gracious Heaven” is literally an icon of recent times. This is the apocalyptic Mother of God. This is her secret.
Before Christmas and after Christmas Virgo.
The miraculous icon “Before Christmas and after Christmas the Virgin” is one of the most famous shrines of the Nikolo-Peshnosh monastery. The Virgin Mary and the Infant God are shown with royal crowns on their heads. Jesus Christ holds the royal staff in his hand, and the Mother of God, as if helping Him, holds the scepter from below. Prayers before the image of the Mother of God saved the entire Moscow region from the plague of a terrible fatal disease - cholera. The icon became widespread after the rescue of the royal family. At the behest of the king, lists of the miraculous face appeared everywhere.
Cover us with the shelter of Your wing.
The Mother of God, covering with Her veil those who seek Her help, is depicted with wings. The icon is now in the State Museum of Ukrainian Fine Arts in Kyiv.
First steps.
The icon is very revered in the Holy Land. She talks about how the Divine and Human are combined: a baby taking his first steps towards his mother - and he is also God, the creator of our World. The icon is located in the monastery of St. Gerasim of Jordan, which stands three kilometers from the place on the Jordan where the Savior was baptized.
Ostrobramskaya.
On the Ostrobramskaya icon of the Mother of God, the Virgin Mary has her gaze downcast and her arms crossed. In addition to the halo, the Mother of God has a crown on her head; from Her comes a radiance with the stars in the night sky. This is one of the rarest types of iconographic depiction of the Blessed Virgin Mary; it does not include the Infant Jesus. The Ostrobamskaya Icon of the Mother of God is kept in Vilnius in the chapel, which stands at the gate at the entrance to the city. The gate is called Sharp, so the icon in turn began to be called “Ostrobramskaya”.
Key of understanding.
The history of the icon of the Most Holy Theotokos “Key of Understanding” is closely connected with the history of a very similar image of “Adding the Mind,” which came to Rus' from the Catholic West in the 16th century. The prototype for its writing was the statue of the Virgin Mary from the Italian city of Loreto, about which there is a lot of evidence. The sanctuary of the statue of the Blessed Virgin of Loreto - the carved niche where the shrine is kept - also has the shape of an arch. A locally revered icon with this name is located in the cemetery church of the city of Balakhna, Nizhny Novgorod region. Before this icon, prayers are performed at the beginning of the youths’ teaching and they pray for the gift of learning abilities.
Gerontissa.
The miraculous image of the Pantokrator monastery on Mount Athos is the icon of the Mother of God “Gerontissa”. She is also called “Abbess” or “Elderwoman”. The Mother of God is the patroness of older people; children ask before Her face for the health of their parents and healing of terrible illnesses. The icon depicts the Mother of God in full height. The Mother of God stands with her arms folded in prayer. She stands alone, without the Holy Child. Near her feet there is a jug from which oil overflows.
Tree of Jesse.
The icon represents Jesse lying on the ground, from whose chest grows a family tree with images of the ancestors of Christ. The icon depicts the genealogy of Jesus Christ through the line of the Blessed Virgin Mary. According to Old Testament prophecies, Christ was to be born into the tribe of Judah from the royal family of David, the son of Jesse.
Mary, find grace from God.
In the 1830s, this image of the Mother of God was brought by a wanderer from Kyiv and donated to the caves of the future Belogorsk Resurrection Monastery. For more than forty years, the icon was in the damp cave air of the Alexander Nevsky Church and did not decay. The original icon and its copies disappeared during the destruction of the monastery in 1918 by the Red Guards. In 2014, one of the first copies of this revered icon returned to the monastery, which is now in the Church of St. Spyridon of Trimifuntsky Belogorsk Monastery.
Conversational.
On the Besednaya Icon, the Mother of God appears sitting on a felled (sometimes growing) tree, covered with greenery or strange flowers, with a “scarlet staff” in her right hand. To the right or left of the Mother of God is St. Nicholas the Wonderworker and the kneeling sexton Yurysh. Above, in the sky segment, is Savior Immanuel, blessing with both hands. This event occurred shortly after the appearance of the Tikhvin Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos, in 1383, when the Most Holy Theotokos Herself commanded sexton George to say that a wooden cross, not an iron one, should be erected over the newly built church in Her honor in Tikhvin: “Because My Son and God was crucified on a wooden cross, not an iron one.” Saint Nicholas promised to give a sign to those of little faith. Upon his return, Yurysh told the people and the priesthood about the phenomenon, but they did not believe him and began to erect an iron cross. A sudden gust of wind grabbed the man erecting the iron cross and dropped it harmlessly to the ground, after which the wooden cross was erected.
Study problems
There is a period in the life of a student or schoolchild when it seems that all the previous ones were definitely white. Books are not read, texts are not remembered, numbers do not add up, essays are not written. Go to the temple - but first learn your lessons.
As a child , Sergius of Radonezh could not learn to read and write for a long time. Until an unknown elder invited him to read a prayer. Sergius coped with it without difficulty, reading the church text not even syllable by syllable, but fluently. And then the future saint began to study better than all his peers. Today, Saint Sergius of Radonezh is asked to help in teaching, which, by the way, is work, so you should not rely solely on higher powers.
— Temple of St. Sergius of Radonezh in the city of Chapaevsk, Samara region
— Temple of St. Sergius of Radonezh in Krapivniki in Moscow
— Church of St. Sergius of Radonezh in Moscow
— Holy Trinity Lavra of Sergius in Sergiev Posad
— Cathedral of St. Sergius of Radonezh and the Icon of the Mother of God “Kazan” in Kursk
— Temple of St. Sergius of Radonezh in Agro-Pustyn, Ryazan district, Ryazan region
Financial difficulties
If a hole has formed in your wallet, loans and mortgages are strangling you - don’t give up. The most important thing is to keep working. And ask for help from the miraculous icons of saints who patronize financial well-being.
Saint Spyridon of Trimifuntsky served as a bishop and was a famous philanthropist - he always tried to help people with financial problems.
— Church of John the Baptist in the village of Klyuchishchi, Republic of Tatarstan
— Church of the Resurrection of the Word on Uspensky Vrazhek
— Temple of St. Sergius of Radonezh in the Vysoko-Petrovsky stauropegial monastery in Moscow
— Trinity Cathedral, Danilov Stavropegic Monastery in Moscow
Reverend Joseph, abbot of Volokolamsk , is famous not only as a clergyman, but also as a successful manager: he organized a monastery in Volokolamsk.
— Skete of All Saints of the Joseph-Volokolamsk Monastery in the village of Teryaevo, Moscow region
— Pafnutev-Borovsky Monastery in the Kaluga region
The icon of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker will bring you success in trade and financial matters. Even during his lifetime, the saint patronized merchants and gave his inherited fortune to charity.
— Cathedral of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker in St. Nicholas Monastery of Kaliningrad
— Church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker in the village of Byngi, Sverdlovsk region
— Church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker in Privolzhsk, Ivanovo region
— Church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker in Veliky Ustyug
— Church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker in Dmitrievsky, Stavropol Territory
— Church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker in Podkopayi in Moscow
— Naval Cathedral of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker and Epiphany in St. Petersburg
Where to hang icons in the apartment?
In order to be able to turn to the Mother of God with prayer at any time, it is necessary to correctly position Her icon. The place in which the images are located is called a shrine, icon case, red or holy corner. It should be separate from all everyday activities. You cannot place holy images next to a computer, TV, or household appliances, or mix them with books, photographs, posters, or decorative items. You can decorate relics with embroidery or fresh flowers; it is also permissible to place a Crucifix or lamp nearby.
Traditionally, shrines are located in the eastern corner, because all the altars of Orthodox churches are oriented towards this side of the world. But if this is impossible for some reason, you can attach the image in front of the front door. In addition, the icon of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos is also hung above the front door or to the right of it - this symbolizes the protection and patronage that the Virgin Mary provides to your family.
You can place a small icon in the nursery too. In this case, it is better to hang the image so that the holy face is located directly opposite the eyes of the sleeping child - this will become a reminder of divine love for the baby, a call to prayer.
So let the Veil of the Heavenly Queen become reliable protection for your home and family, give you happiness, peace and grace!
Health problems
If you have health problems and need to gain strength, including spiritual strength, turn to the saints who help with illnesses. But remember that prayers do not replace visits to the doctor, but complement them.
The Great John the Baptist, or Baptist , helped a huge number of people, as evidenced by the book of gratitude dedicated to him, kept in the chapel of the John the Baptist Monastery.
— St. John the Baptist stauropegial convent in Moscow
— Church of John the Baptist in Tver
— Temple of the Beheading of John the Baptist in the Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery in the Vologda region
— Church of John the Baptist in Tolchkovo
— Church of John the Baptist in the village of Klyuchishchi, Republic of Tatarstan
— Church of John the Baptist at the Smolensk Theological School
Icon of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
One of the most important events in human history is the Nativity of Christ. Almost everyone who grew up in a Christian country knows its history.
According to church tradition, the Virgin Mary, whom her parents dedicated to God as promised, was raised at the Jerusalem Temple until a young age. When She reached maturity, according to the laws of that place and time, she had to get married. But Mary announced that she had given God a vow of lifelong virginity, thereby choosing this path of serving Him. Then the high priests betrothed Her to the already elderly Joseph, who was a descendant of King David (according to prophecy, the Savior of the world was to be born from this family). The husband did not have a close relationship with Her and retained Her virginity, but he already had children from a previous marriage, who after the birth of Jesus began to be called His brothers and sisters.
So, Mary, while still at the temple, loved to read the Holy Scriptures and often thought about the prophecy described in the Book of the prophet Isaiah. She prayed to see the Mother of Christ and serve her. It was thanks to Her angelic spiritual purity and greatest humility that She was chosen by God. An Angel of the Lord appeared to Her with good news, and this scene served as the subject for the icon of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Archangel Gabriel said that She will give birth to a Son who is destined to save humanity. It was not clear to the Virgin Mary how She could become a mother if She did not want to leave virginity, and then the Angel explained that She would conceive from the Holy Spirit.
The icon, first of all, will remind us of the purity and immaculateness of the Mother of God, and that we should strive to be like that. Also, looking at the image, we will remember the miracle that happened - God appeared in the flesh to give salvation and eternal life, liberation from slavery and sin to every person on earth.
In front of this icon they pray for recovery, release from prison or spiritual freedom. But it is important to believe not in the power of the image, but in the power of God, and then, no matter what area of life you pray for, you will definitely receive an answer from the Lord.
