The Iveron Icon of Moscow: From the Resurrection Gate to the Mystery of Its Fate

 

Among the most beloved icons of the Most Holy Theotokos in the Russian Orthodox Church is the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God, venerated for centuries in a chapel beside the Resurrection Gates of Moscow, near Red Square. Known in Russian as the “Iverskaya,” the icon is associated with the celebrated Athonite image of the Mother of God called the “Portaitissa,” or “Gatekeeper,” which is kept at the Iveron Monastery on Mount Athos.

For generations, the Moscow icon was one of the capital’s principal objects of popular devotion. People from every walk of life came before it to pray, give thanks, and seek the intercession of the Mother of God. The chapel became a spiritual landmark of Moscow, and the icon’s reputation for miracles spread throughout Russia.

The history of this sacred image encompasses the spiritual relationship between Russia and the Holy Mountain, the religious life of imperial Moscow, the persecution of the Church under the Soviet regime, and the restoration of Orthodox life after the fall of Communism. It also includes a historical question that remains unresolved: what became of the celebrated icon that stood in the original Moscow chapel, and does that very image still survive?

The Iveron Icon of Moscow: From Mount Athos to Novodevichy Convent

Among the most venerated icons of the Most Holy Theotokos in the Russian Orthodox Church is the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God, a copy of the celebrated Athonite wonderworking image known as the Portaitissa, or “Gatekeeper.” Brought from Mount Athos to Moscow in 1648, this sacred image became one of the most treasured spiritual possessions of the Russian capital. For centuries, it was preserved at the Novodevichy Convent, where it remains a focus of Orthodox devotion.

The history of this icon reflects the close spiritual relationship between Russia and the Holy Mountain, the devotion of the Russian Church to the Mother of God, and the perseverance of a sacred image through the upheavals of revolution and religious persecution.

Holy Martyrs Karpos, Papylos, Agathodoros and Agathonike in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church

By Fr. George Dorbarakis

1. These Holy Martyrs of Christ were physicians by profession and lived during the reign of Emperor Decius and under Valerius, proconsul of Asia. Saint Karpos was the Bishop of Thyateira, while Papylos was a deacon ordained by Saint Karpos. They were arrested by the governor because of their faith in Christ. When questioned, they confessed the name of their Master, Christ, before all. Because they refused to sacrifice to the idols, despite being compelled to do so, they were bound tightly to horses and made to walk in front of a chariot, thus being dragged toward Sardis. There they were hung on a wooden frame and scraped. At that time, Saint Agathodoros, who was a servant of the Saints and had been following them, was strengthened by an angel of God and also confessed Christ. As a result, he was hung up and beaten very severely with rods. Thus, through these blows, he surrendered his spirit to the Lord.

Saint Karpos, while hanging there, smiled. The governor then asked him:

“Why did you laugh, Karpos?”

“I saw the glory of my Lord and rejoiced,” he replied.

Homilies from the Menaion for Every Day of the Year: October 13

The Month of October

Day 13

44. In Time of Illness, One Should Seek Healing First from God, Not from a Physician

(The Sufferings of the Holy Martyrs Karpos and Papylos)

When illness befalls one of us, should we call upon a physician to deliver us from it, or not? We should, because the word of God also advises us to do so. “Honor the physician with the honor due to him, according to your need of him” (Sirach 38:1), it says; and elsewhere: “And give the physician his place” (Sirach 38:12).

Now for another question: should we call upon a physician as soon as illness strikes, or not? No. First of all, we must turn to God and beseech Him to heal us of our illness, and only then call upon a physician. Why? Because our life and death are in the hands of God. Consequently, only God can heal us, while the physician is merely an instrument in His hands. If God does not wish to have mercy on us, the physician will be unable to bring us any relief from our illness. Perhaps you would like proof of this? Very well. We shall gladly provide it.

Encomium to our Venerable and God-bearing Father Symeon the New Theologian (St. Nikodemos the Hagiorite) - 1 of 5

In 1784, two years after the publication of the Philokalia, Saint Makarios of Corinth returned to Mount Athos and encouraged Saint Nikodemos the Hagiorite to undertake the preparation of an edition of the writings of Saint Symeon the New Theologian (949–1022). With the assistance of Dionysios Zagoraios, who translated the texts into modern Greek, Nikodemos gathered the scattered manuscripts and published them together in 1790. He also composed a Service of Praise and an Encomium in honor of Saint Symeon, intended to be read on his feast day, October 12. In this Encomium, Saint Nikodemos praises Saint Symeon’s holiness, theological wisdom, and spiritual greatness, presenting him as a model of the life in Christ. The following is an English translation of this Encomium, presented here for the first time.

Encomium to our Venerable and God-bearing Father Symeon the New Theologian 

By St. Nikodemos the Hagiorite

1. Today a common joy has dawned upon the whole world; today a mysterious gladness has shone forth upon the inhabited earth; today a spiritual rejoicing has seized the entire Church of Christ. For what reason? And why? Because of the joyous feast and splendid celebration of Saint Symeon the New Theologian.

Holy Martyrs Probos, Tarachos and Andronikos in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church

By Fr. George Dorbarakis

1. These Saints lived when Diocletian was consul in Rome and Flavian was governor. Tarachos was advanced in age, Roman by birth, and a soldier by profession. Probos was from Side in Pamphylia, while Andronikos was from the city of Ephesus in Ionia. During the persecutions that had broken out against the Christians at that time, all three were arrested.

They crushed Tarachos’s jaws and neck with stones, burned his hands with fire, and suspended him on a wooden frame amid suffocating smoke. Next, they poured vinegar into his nostrils and seared his breasts with red-hot spits. They cut off his ears with a razor, flayed his head, and threw him to the beasts. Finally, after cutting him into pieces with a knife, he offered his soul to God.

The valiant Probos was first beaten with rawhide thongs. Then they burned his feet with red-hot irons and suspended him on a wooden frame. There they seared his back and sides with red-hot spits, and pierced his shins with other spits. Finally, after cutting him to pieces with knives as well, he reached his blessed end.

The divine Andronikos was suspended on a wooden frame, his shins slashed with sharp irons, and his sides pierced through. Then the executioners rubbed salt into his wounds, cut off his tongue and lips, and, after cutting nearly his entire body to pieces with knives, he too surrendered his spirit into the hands of God.

Homilies from the Menaion for Every Day of the Year: October 12

 

"The Flight of the French from Moscow on October 12, 1812" (originally illustrated by artist D. Scotti)

The Month of October

Day 12

43. Homily on the Occasion of the Cross Procession Around the Kremlin

(Commemorating the Expulsion of the French from Moscow, October 12)*

Today, a cross procession is held in Moscow around the Kremlin in memory of the French abandonment of Moscow in 1812. On this ever-memorable day, as we recall both the disastrous and the glorious period in the history of our homeland, the following words of Chrysostom, the Ecumenical Teacher, naturally come to mind:

“Let us not be discontented, but rejoice in our sorrows, for they are medicines beneficial to our wounds. Although bitter on the one hand, they are sweet on the other. Let us be grateful to God even for our afflictions, for He does not send them without reason, but accomplishes through them what is beneficial for our souls.” (Prologue, August 7)

These words naturally come to mind today because we believe that nothing could better demonstrate their truth than the events of that ever-memorable year of 1812, which we commemorate today. Indeed, consider first the beginning of the Patriotic War. We surrendered Smolensk to the enemy, and then, following the Battle of Borodino, we abandoned Moscow itself.

Homily on the Fourth Sunday of Luke: On the Good Sower (Archimandrite George Kapsanis)

 

Homily on the Fourth Sunday of Luke: On the Good Sower 

By Archimandrite George Kapsanis,
Former Abbot of the Sacred Monastery of Gregoriou, Mount Athos

(Delivered in 2001)

Today’s parable is our Lord’s most beautiful parable concerning the Good Sower, who sows the seed, whose fruitfulness or ultimate loss depends on the soil on which it falls. This parable prompts us to reflect on our responsibility concerning what kind of soil we ourselves are.

That is, whether we offer ourselves to God as good soil, into which His word can fall and bear fruit “thirtyfold, sixtyfold, and a hundredfold,” or whether, on the contrary, because of our passions, our indifference, and the cares of this life, the word of God falls and is heard by us but bears no fruit. It is lost.

Once again, we see that our salvation is the result of synergy. God works our salvation, but we too must cooperate. God sows His word, but we must be ready to hear the word of God and bear fruit, as the holy Evangelist characteristically says, “with patience.”

Homily for the Fourth Sunday of Luke (St. Cleopa of Sihastria)

Homily for the Fourth Sunday of Luke, 
or Twenty-First Sunday After Pentecost

On the Sowers of the Word of God

“The sower went out to sow his seed” (Luke 8:5).

By St. Cleopa of Sihastria

Beloved faithful,

The Sower in today’s Gospel parable is none other than our Lord God and Savior Jesus Christ Himself. He came forth from the bosom of the Father, as He Himself said: “I came forth from God” (John 17:8), and came to earth to sow the seed of His word. The field in which He sowed the seed of the Holy Gospel is this world, which He created, as He said in another parable: “The field is the world” (Matthew 13:38).

From this parable we see that only one-quarter of the field, that is, of the world, was good soil. Having received the seed of the word of God, this soil grew and yielded a hundredfold (Matthew 13:23). The other three parts of the field were a road trampled by people (Matthew 13:4), rocky ground, and soil overgrown with thorns (Matthew 13:22). When the good seed of the word fell upon them, it bore no fruit but was lost.

Although “God desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:4), who is to blame that only one-quarter of the world is represented by good soil, receiving the seed of the word of life and bearing fruit a hundredfold? The entire blame for this lack of fruitfulness lies not with God, but with the human being who, through the disordered state of his soul, prevents the seed of the divine word from growing and bearing fruit. We must know that God created the human being with free will. He does not force open the doors of human hearts; He merely knocks at their doors, as it is written: “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me” (Revelation 3:20).