Located at the Cathedral of Saint Michael the Archangel in Sitka, Alaska is one of the most revered Icons in North America: the Sitka Mother of God.

This Icon has been attributed to a famous Iconographer, Vladimir Lukich Borovikovsky (1758-1826), a protégé of the Empress Catherine II who was instructed at the Academy of Arts in Saint Petersburg, Russia. In addition to being a great portrait painter, Borovikovsky also painted many of the Icons for the Cathedral of the Kazan Icon in Saint Petersburg.

Painted in the style of the Kazan Mother of God Icon, on canvas, the Sitka Mother of God Icon is 36 x 17-1/2 inches in size. An exceptionally beautiful and detailed riza of silver covers the Icon of the Theotokos and Christ child, and the Image of God the Father blessing from above.

The Cathedral received the Icon as a gift from the laborers of the Russian American Company in 1850, two years after the Cathedral was completed. Even with their meager wages, these men generously made their contribution to the Church.

Miracles have been attributed to the Sitka Mother of God Icon over the years. It is believed that the gaze of the eyes of the Theotokos have led to the restored health of those who prayed before the Icon.

Because of the peaceful gaze of the Theotokos, the Icon has been described as a “pearl of Russian ecclesiastical art of ineffable gentleness, purity and harmony….” And “…the most beautiful face of the Mother of God with the Divine Child in her arms is so delicately and artistically done that the more one looks at it the more difficult it is to tear one’s gaze away.”

Originally part of the main Iconostasis at the Cathedral of Saint Michael the Archangel in Sitka, Alaska, the Icon is now permanently located on the far left side of the Iconostasis in a special place of honor.

The Holy Great Martyr Procopius, in the world Neanius, a native of Jerusalem, lived and suffered during the reign of the emperor Diocletian (284-305). His father, an eminent Roman by the name of Christopher, was a Christian, but the mother of the saint, Theodosia, remained a pagan. He was early deprived of his father, and the young child was raised by his mother. Having received an excellent secular education, he was introduced to Diocletian in the very first year of the emperor’s accession to the throne, and he quickly advanced in government service. Towards the year 303, when open persecution against Christians began, Neanius was sent as a proconsul to Alexandria with orders to mercilessly persecute the Church of God.

On the way to Egypt, near the Syrian city of Apamea, Neanius had a vision of the Lord Jesus, similar to the vision of Saul on the road to Damascus. A divine voice exclaimed, “Neanius, why do you persecute Me?”

Neanius asked, “Who are you, Lord?”

“I am the crucified Jesus, the Son of God.”

At that moment a radiant Cross appeared in the air. Neanius felt an inexpressible joy and spiritual happiness in his heart and he was transformed from being a persecutor into a zealous follower of Christ. From this point in time Neanius became favorably disposed towards Christians and fought victoriously against the barbarians.

The words of the Savior came true for the saint, “A man’s foes shall be those of his own household” (Mt. 10:36). His mother, a pagan herself, went to the emperor to complain that her son did not worship the ancestral gods. Neanius was summoned to the procurator Judaeus Justus, where he was solemnly handed the decree of Diocletian. Having read through the blasphemous directive, Neanius quietly tore it up before the eyes of everyone. This was a crime, which the Romans regarded as an “insult to authority.” Neanius was held under guard and in chains sent to Caesarea of Palestine, where the Apostle Paul once languished. After terrible torments, they threw the saint into a dark prison. That night, a light shone in the prison, and the Lord Jesus Christ Himself baptized the suffering confessor, and gave him the name Procopius.

Repeatedly they led Saint Procopius to the courtroom, demanding that he renounce Christ, and they subjected him to more tortures. The stolidity of the martyr and his fiery faith brought down God’s abundant grace on those who witnessed the execution.

Inspired by the example of Procopius, many of the holy martyr’s former guards and Roman soldiers went beneath the executioner’s sword together with their tribunes Nikostrates and Antiochus. Twelve Christian women received martyr’s crowns, after they came to the gates of the Caesarea Praetorium.

Struck by the great faith and courage of the Christians, and seeing the firmness of her son in bearing terrible sufferings, Theodosia became repentant and stood in the line of confessors and was executed. Finally the new procurator, Flavian, convinced of the futility of the tortures, sentenced the holy Great Martyr Procopius to beheading by the sword. By night Christians took up his much-tortured body, and with tears and prayers, they committed it to the earth. This was the first martyrdom at Caesarea (303).

The incorrupt relics of Saint Procopius were uncovered during the eighteenth century near the Entry of the Theotokos parish church in Ustya (Vologda diocese) and placed in the church, where for two hundred years they remained in open view, a source of numerous healings. No account of the origin and life of the holy saint of God has been preserved. His name became known when he himself revealed it in a vision to a pious local inhabitant named Savela.

In connection with an increase in the number of miraculous healings, the relics of Saint Procopius were examined in 1696 (or 1645) and in 1739. After this a chapel in honor of the saint was consecrated in the church where his relics rest. His icon was painted, and a service to him was composed.

In 1818 the universal celebration of the saint was established.

The wonderworking Kazan Icon has great significance for the faithful of Russia, and Russian Orthodox families treat it with unparalleled reverence. The magnificent Kazan Cathedral was built in Saint Petersburg, to house the Icon.

For the most part, it is this Icon that blesses the young to the crown, and its peaceful radiance of an unsleeping lamp illuminates the children. The meek face of the Mother of God looks lovingly at the growing children. In Moscow, the Kazan Cathedral stands on the historic Red (Beautiful) Square, opposite the Kremlin walls, two dozen steps from the Ivḗron chapel, in view of the monument to Pozharsky towering on the square. It stands as an unshakable remembrance of the mercy of the Mother of God toward the Russian land during one of its most terrible years.

The Kazan campaign of Tsar Ivan the Terrible resembled a Cross Procession. It seemed that the goal was to bring a new flock to Christ rather than to subjugate the new kingdom to the Muscovite Tsar. Kazan fell on the Feast of the Protection of the Mother of God. An explosion from the wall and towers of Kazan was heard when, during the Liturgy in the mobile royal church, the deacon intoned the petition of the Great Litany: "That He may aid him and subdue beneath his feet every foe and adversary…."

After entering Kazan the next day, the Tsar immediately laid the foundation for a cathedral in honor of the Annunciation of the Most Holy Theotokos. At the same time, the Tsar determined a place for the construction of other churches, and the following year a Diocese was established in Kazan and Saint Guria became the first Bishop of Kazan.

Under the zealous disseminator of the light of Christ, Bishop Guria, and his successor, Saint Germanos the affirmation of the Faith in Kazan was successful, but then the Moslems made a strong resistance. At this time the Mother of God decided to strengthen Orthodoxy, and she was pleased to glorify her Icon.

In 1579, after a terrible fire that destroyed half of the Kazan Kremlin and part of the city adjacent to it, the Moslems began to say that the Christian God had no mercy for the Russians and showed His wrath by this fire. "The faith of Christ," the chronicler remarks, "has become a proverb and a desecration." Then the Lord showed His mercy.

A certain archer intended to build a new house on the site of the conflagration. In a dream, the Mother of God appeared to his nine-year-old daughter Matrona, ordering her to tell the Archbishop and the city chiefs that they would remove her Icon from the bowels of the earth, and in another dream, the Mother of God pointed out the place where the Icon was hidden on the ashes of the burnt house. The girl told her mother about her dream, but she attached no importance to her daughter's words. The vision was repeated, but the mother did not pay attention to the command of the Mother of God, transmitted through the mouth of her child. Finally, for the third time, in a dream, the girl saw the Icon itself, from which a formidable voice was heard: "If you do not reveal my words, I will appear in another place, but you will perish."

The girl woke up shocked and frightened and began to call her mother,demanding that she obey the command of the Queen of Heaven. Then, finally, she agreed and she took her daughter to the officials and to Archbishop Jeremiah. But none of them believed the girl's words.

On July 8, returning from fruitless walks, the mother stood at noon and began to dig at her daughter's direction. Others also helped her, but the Icon did not appear. Then Matrona began to dig, and near the place where she was in the burnt house, soon the treasure was found. She saw that the Icon of the Mother of God was covered with an old sleeve of cherry-red cloth. The face on the Icon was fresh, unspoiled, as if the Icon had just been painted. Those who were present at the discovery of the Icon immediately spread the news throughout the city. When the authorities learned about the event, everyone gathered at the archer's house; the Archbishop of Kazan made a Cross Procession with the clergy to the place of the apparition, and the Icon was solemnly transferred to the parish church of Saint Nicholas, whose Icon is popularly known as "of Tula." Its rector was the priest Errmogenes, later Metropolitan of Kazan, and later Patriarch of All Russia (+ February 17, 1612), who reposed during the Time of Troubles for Orthodoxy. He described the event of the appearance of the Icon.

A solemn Moleben served at the church of Saint Nicholas, and then the Icon was carried to the Annunciation Cathedral. On the way, the first miracle occurred. a man named Joseph, who had been blind for three years, was able to see. Then, in the cathedral itself, another blind man named Nikḗtas was healed. Afterward, it was noticed that many healings took place before the Kazan Icon, especially for those who suffered from afflictions of the eyes.

Soon the Archbishop and the officials sent the Tsar in Moscow a detailed report on the discovery of the Icon with an exact copy. The Tsar ordered a convent to be built for forty nuns on the site of the apparition, and to keep the Icon there. The young girl Matrona and her mother were the first to be tonsured in the new monastery. In addition to the original churches, a new stone church was soon built, with a trapeza. One hundred souls were given for the maintenance of the monastery. In 1594 a new extensive cathedral of the Dormition of the Mother of God was built and consecrated by Metropolitan Errmogenes the following year. At the same time, the number of nuns was increased to 64; rich contributions of utensils, icons, and vestments were brought to the monastery; the Icon was covered by a riza adorned with gold, precious stones and pearls.

New magnificent decorations were placed on the Icon by Empress Katherine. In 1798 she decided to build another church to replace the dilapidated temple which had stood for two hundred years. She donated 25, 000 rubles for this purpose, and the church was consecrated in 1808.

The mind of a believer is involuntarily struck by one circumstance. The appearance of the Kazan Icon signified the triumph of the Russians over the Moslem Tatars. And all the time, while the cherished shrine remained in Kazan, they considered themselves safe from the east.

On the night of June 29, 1904, several thieves broke into the cathedral church of the Kazan Monastery and after stealing it, took the miraculous Kazan icon with them. The robbers have never been found, and the Icon disappeared without a trace. Then we were defeat came from the east. There are two opinions egarding the fate of the true Kazan Icon.

Some believe that the original Icon was kept in Moscow and transferred there at the pious desire of the Tsars, But without publicity, so as not to upset the residents of Kazan. The Russian Tsars liked to concentrate these shrines in Moscow, from all places. The Hierarch Ermogenes could have brought this Icon from Kazan with him, when he moved to the patriarchal cathedral. At the transfer of the capital to St. Petersburg, supporters of this opinion say, it was this Icon that was among others, that was moved to the new capital; therefore, the real Kazan Icon was in the St. Petersburg Kazan Cathedral. Others claim that the original Kazan Icon was with Pozharsky's army and, arriving in Moscow, she stayed in the cathedral built for her by Pozharsky on Red Square. The dimensions of this Icon were much less than the missing Kazan Icon, which remained in St. Petersburg.

Be that as it may, all three Icons were great sources of the grace of the Mother of God. The St. Petersburg Kazan Icon is the most cherished and beloved shrine of St. Petersburg. The faithful always stand before her, and many businessmen with a strong religious feeling come every day to venerate the Icon, as if in the midst many activities they took a minute to go and greet their Mother.

In the Kazan Cathedral, Kutuzov rests from his immortal historical exploit. When in 1812, heeding the voice of the people, who demanded that he be placed at the head of the Russian armies, Alexander I appointed Kutuzov as commander-in-chief, the latter, before leaving for the army, stopped by to pray in the Kazan Cathedral. People harnessed the horses of his carriage and cried out: "Drive out the French!" After a Moleben, the Kazan Icon was placed on Kutuzov, who was always known for his piety, The Mother of God did not reject the hopes which the old commander entrusted to her. And the field marshal, with indescribable glory, returned in a coffin to repose in the Kazan Cathedral.

There is another memory from that time – a magnificent iconostasis was cast in silver. The silver was stolen by the Cossacks from the French after they had looted the Moscow churches, and they brought the silver as a gift to the Kazan Cathedral. Beneath the wonderworking Icon, in gold letters, there is a brief notice: "The diligent offering of the Don army."

Something wonderful blows under the highest arches of the Kazan Cathedral between the majestic granite pillars with banners attached to them, symbols of past victories. Both the Moscow Ivḗron Icon, and the St. Petersburg Kazan Icon stand in the center of noisy and lively metropolitan life. There, beyond the walls, is the world and its deeds. And here — eternity, a quiet, thoughtful eternity. After standing for at least a few minutes in this thoughtful silence, you already feel, how much further one becomes from the temporal world, and how much closer to the world of eternity. And there, before the Icon, they light their candles with fervent supplications, and from the ground tises the hymn to the Mother of God: "O fervent intercessor…."

The origin of the Icon in Moscow's Kazan Cathedral is as follows. She was sent from Kazan to Prince Pozharsky, who went to liberate Moscow with the squads of the northern cities. The Russian soldiers prayed fervently to the Mother of God, asking her to help them rescue the capital. The Poles locked themselves in Kitay-Gorod, which surrounds the Kremlin in a narrow ring. In the Kremlin the Greek Archbishop Arsenios languished as a captive of the Poles..Saint Sergius of Radonezh appeared to him and said that through the prayers of the Mother of God, the reigning city was delivered from its enemies. The news of this appearance reached the Russians and animated them. On October 22, they drove the Poles out of Kitay-Gorod, and then the Poles surrendered the Kremlin. The clergy came out to meet the Russian army with the cherished Moscow shrines, and at the head of the Russian squads was the Kazan Icon.

In remembrance of this event, another commemoration of the Kazan Icon was established on October 22, first in Moscow, and then throughout Russia.

The original Kazan Icon disappeared during the chaos of the Revolution, and thieves stole the jeweled riza from it. It has been suggested that they may have destroyed the Icon, since they were more interested in the jewels.

The Tenderness icon of the Mother of God belongs to the Eleousa (Umilenie) type.

On July 8, 1337 a caretaker in Holy Trinity Church in Novgorod heard a noise inside the church and went to investigate. He was astonished to see that the icon of the Mother of God from the second tier of icons above the northern door of the iconostasis had left its place and was floating in the air, and tears were flowing from the eyes of the Virgin.

Archbishop Alexis was notified, and he and his clergy came to the church with a large crowd of people. A special shrine was built for the icon, and July 8 was appointed as its date of commemoration.

That same year, a plague appeared in Novgorod. People flocked to pray before the wonderworking icon, and the plague was stopped. In 1352, Archbishop Basil ordered that an annual procession be made from the church of Holy Wisdom to Holy Trinity Church.

In the summer of 1366 Holy Trinity Church burned down, and the “Tender Feeling” Icon floated in the air above the flames. Archbishop Alexis came to the church to serve a Molieben, and the icon descended into his hands. The fire went out, but a burn mark seven inches long was left on the back of the icon.

Great Prince John III took the icon to Moscow in 1397, where it remained until 1508. At that time, the Mother of God appeared to Princess Maria in a dream and ordered that the icon be returned to Novgorod.

The “Tender Feeling” Icon is of the Umilenie, or Eleousa type.

The monastic martyrs Epictetus and Astion lived in Bithynia on the southwest coast of the Black Sea during the reign of the Roman emperor Diocletian (284-305). From his youth, Saint Epictetus had dedicated his life to God, and studied to acquire knowledge of the Gospel. He entered a monastery, and later was found worthy to be ordained to the holy priesthood. Proclaiming the Gospel of Christ, the saint converted many people to Christianity. God granted Epictetus the gift of wonderworking, and he healed many people troubled by unclean spirits, or afflicted with other maladies.

One day while out for a stroll, the illustrious youth Astion met Saint Epictetus. During a long conversation Saint Epictetus enlightened Astion, sowing the seed of God’s Word in the young man’s soul. He spoke to him about the only true God, about the great value of the immortal human soul, and about fleeting worldly pleasures.

Astion came to believe in Christ and was baptized. Soon after this, he also became a monk. Since Christians were being persecuted in Bithynia, he asked Saint Epictetus if they might travel together to some distant land where they could dedicate their lives completely to God. Boarding a ship, Saints Epictetus and Astion journeyed to Scythia and settled among the pagan Slavs near the Roman outpost of Halmyris in the province of Histria south of the mouth of the Danube. The city was the site of a military fort and a base for the Roman fleet which patrolled the Danube and the Black Sea.

When they arrived at Halmyris in 273, Saint Epictetus was forty-seven years old, and Saint Astion was only eighteen. During the next seventeen years, the saints spent their lives in prayer and fasting, and performed many miracles.

The God-pleasing lives of the monks could not remain hidden from others for very long. People afflicted by various illnesses or oppressed by evil spirits came to the saints seeking relief. Even pagans asked the holy ascetics for help, and after being healed of their afflictions, they embraced Christianity.

Saint Epictetus once healed a fifteen-year-old deaf and dumb boy by praying and breathing on him three times. More than a thousand people became Christians after witnessing this miracle. Saint Astion once cured a man whose legs and toes were crushed when he fell from a building.

Latronianus, the military commander of the district, arrived in Halmyris in 290 on an official visit of inspection. The pagan priests wasted no time in complaining to him about Saints Epictetus and Astion. They denounced the two men from Bithynia, accusing them of converting people to Christianity through sorcery, and persuading them not to offer sacrifice to the pagan gods.

The saints were arrested and interrogated by Latronianus, who tried to find out their names and where they were from. Their only reply was, “We are Christians.” Latronianus had them tortured in an effort to make them abandon their Christian beliefs.

After thirty days in prison without food and water, the holy martyrs Epictetus and Astion were once again brought before Latronianus. They remained steadfast and ready to endure even more suffering for Christ. The commander declared that Epictetus and Astion were traitors, and ordered them to be tortured and beheaded.

Saints Epictetus and Astion received the crown of martyrdom on July 8, 290. At first, they were buried in an unknown spot. Later, their holy relics were transferred into the basilica built in the fourth century by Saint Constantine the Great (May 21) at Halmyris.

Archaeologists discovered the holy relics of Saints Epictetus and Astion at Halmyris in 2001. The bones were scattered about in two rooms of a burial crypt, indicating that the tomb had been vandalized, perhaps in the sixth century. Scientific tests on the bones revealed that one of the men was approximately sixty-four years old, and the other about thirty-five. This is consistent with the ages of the two saints as given in the written accounts of their martyrdom. The bones also indicate that the two had been beheaded.

The holy relics of Saints Epictetus and Astion were reburied in 2001 by Archbishop Theodosius of Tomis (Romania).

The Ustiug Annunciation Icon of the Mother of God The “Ustiug Annunciation” is a venerable icon, before which Saint Procopius, Fool-for-Christ (+ 1303) prayed with intense fervor on June 25, 1290 for the salvation of the city of Ustiug from the wrath of God.

The icon was painted by a Novgorod iconographer when the holy Prince Vsevolod-Gabriel (February 11) ruled in the city. In 1567, under Metropolitan Philip (January 9), the holy icon was transferred from Great Ustiug to Moscow and placed in the Dormition cathedral. At the present time it is located in the state Tretyakov gallery.

Saint Theophilus was from Ziki in Macedonia, and lived during the sixteenth century. He had a very good education, but more importantly he dedicated himself to God, purifying himself from every soul-destroying passion, and acquiring every virtue which filled him with the grace of the All-Holy Spirit.

He travelled to Alexandria, at the request of Patriarch Niphon of Constantinople, in order to determine whether the stories about Patriarch Joachim being able to move mountains and to drink poison with no ill effects were true or not. After looking into the matter, he was able to verify that these stories were true.

After completing this work, Saint Theophilus went to struggle on the Holy Mountain, living first at Vatopedi, then at Ivḗron before settling at Saint Basil’s cell near Karyes. Although he did not seek the praise of men, the fame of the holy ascetic became known on Mount Athos, and in other places as well. His holy life and spiritual gifts could not be hidden, but were revealed by the Lord.

When the Archbishop of Thessalonica reposed, Saint Theophilus was nominated for this office. Out of humility, however, he declined to accept the position.

In 1548, as he felt the approach of death, Saint Theophilus told his disciple Isaac not to give him an honorable burial, but to tie a cord around his feet and drag him out of the monastery, and then to throw his body into a nearby stream.

When the saint fell asleep in the Lord on July 8, 1548, Isaac carried out the instructions of his Elder. Although he was reluctant to do this, he obeyed the saint just as he had always done when Saint Theophilus was alive.

By God’s will, the holy relics of Saint Theophilus were later found and brought to his cell. Then a fragrant myrrh began to flow from the saint’s incorrupt body, which was later enshrined at the Pantokrator Monastery.

The Annals of Tambov state that the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God was in the Transfiguration Cathedral of Tambov from the first years of the city’s existence (it had been founded in 1636), and it was the main shrine in the region of Tambov. According to the Annals, “on December 6, 1695, during the All Night Vigil in the wooden cathedral church, tears flowed from the eyes of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God.” These tears were so abundant that they moistened the cloth beneath the Icon and the analogion, as well. This was the Icon’s first miracle. Hieromonk Gabriel, the Treasurer of the bishop’s household, recorded this event.

Since then, many who prayed before the Icon began to receive healing, including Saint Pitirim the Bishop of Tambov (+ July 28, 1698) himself. Saint Pitirim had a difficult time when he was first appointed to that See. The moral character of the citizens was very low, and he had to struggle to correct them, especially those who were recent arrivals. Therefore, he placed two Icons on the main gates of the city: one of the Crucifixion, and one of the Kazan Mother of God. This may have happened soon after the appearance of the tears. Many people came to venerate the Icon, entreating the Most Holy Theotokos to help them in their afflictions.

The priests from the Cathedral of the Savior were permitted to bring the Icon from the temple into the private homes of those who were sick so that prayers for their healing could be offered. According to one historian of the nineteenth century, the Icon “visited many houses in the city and outside the city, and dried the tears of many unfortunate people.” (Khitrov, G. Historical and Statistical Description of the Tambov Diocese, Tambov, 1861).

In the middle of the XIX century, the icon was placed under glass in a wooden carved frame and it had a silver and gold-plated riza, which was studded with precious stones: turquoise, amethysts, diamonds and topaz. The Cathedral of the Savior was closed in the 1930s, and the shrine was lost.

Since the Icon is of the Kazan type, its date of commemoration is July 8. In the upper church of the cathedral is another Tambov Icon, also known as Utkinskaya, which is an Icon of the Hodēgḗtria type. Its Feast Day is April 16.

King Mirdat (408-410), the son of Varaz-Bakur, was the first martyred king of Georgia. He was raised by his maternal grandfather, King Trdat.

The faithful grandfather taught the future king to love God and his nation, and the young prince mindfully preserved his grandfather’s wisdom throughout his life. Mirdat was endowed with the greatest of a nobleman’s virtues: wisdom, discretion, physical prowess, fearlessness, valor, and courage. He liberated Klarjeti from the Byzantines, abolished the tribute system (by which Georgia was required to pay taxes to Persia), and prepared for war against the Persians.

The Persian king gathered an enormous army to punish the Georgian nation, and King Mirdat courageously marched toward Gardabani (in eastern Georgia) with his much smaller army. But the selflessness and bravery of the Georgian soldiers were no match for the multitude of Persian warriors. The Georgians suffered defeat, and the Persian conquerors captured the young king.

The Persian king demanded that Mirdat renounce the Christian Faith, but he was firmly rebuffed. Neither intimidation nor fear of persecution would break the will of the king. After torturing him for his love of Christ, the Persians bound him in chains, tormented him almost to death, and cast him into prison, where he gave up his soul to the Lord.

The martyrdom of King Mirdat took place at the beginning of the 5th century, in the year 410.

The Kazan-Yaroslavl Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos was found in the year 1588 by a man named Gerasimos, who had traveled to Kazan to pray before its famous Icon, because his right hand had become crippled. The Mother of God appeared to him and ordered him to go to a certain place, and then to take her Icon and bring it to the city of Romanov and place it in a church. After the man had followed these directives to the letter, his hand was healed.

The holy Kazan Icon remained at Romanov for twenty-one years, but on March 9,1609 the city was taken by the Polish-Lithuanian forces. A Lithuanian officer stole the Icon from the Kazan cathedral in Romanov. When it was learned that the holy Icon had been found in the officer's home, the citizens of Yaroslavl begged him to let their city have it. He said he would give it to them if they paid him a considerable sum of money. For a long time the officer rejected their offers, but then suddenly, on March 18, he brought it to one of Yaroslav's most honorable citizens – Basil Lytkin. The Icon was solemnly transferred to the country parish church of the "Laudation of the Virgin” Icon (Fifth Saturday of Great Lent). When the Polish-Lithuanian troops attacked Tver that year the holy Icon was taken into the city to the church of the Nativity of the Lord on the banks of the Volga. Then the Mother of God appeared twice to Deacon Eleazar, commanding him to build a new church to house the Icon.

The people of Yaroslavl placed the wonderworking Kazan Icon in that church, and many miracles occurred. They also worked most energetically to build a women's monastery for seventy-two sisters whose own monastery had been destroyed by the Polish-Lithuanian army.

In 1610, the residents of Romanov begged Tsar Basil IV Shuisky to allow the Icon to be taken from Yaroslavl and returned to Romanov. Then new healings took place before the Icon that same day. The nun Anysia, who was unable to move her hands or feet recovered, and a man named Constantine was delivered from his madness. In view of these miracles, the citizens of Yaroslavl, in their turn, asked the Tsar to let the Icon remain at Yaroslavl. From Moscow there came a request for detailed information about the Icon, and the Tsar decided that the Icon would remain at Yaroslavl. However, the people of Yaroslavl were ordered to make an exact copy of the Icon, and to adorn it with an oklad (metal cover), just like the one on the wonderworking Icon, and then send the copy to Romanov. All this was done. In 1611, the copy was taken to Romanov and it was placed in the Kazan church, where the wonderworking Icon had once stood. Every year the original wonderworking Icon was brought to the city of Romanov with great ceremony.

Saint Thomas of Mount Maleos (Maleós) was a military commander before becoming a monk. Strong and brave, he participated in many battles, and brought victories to his countrymen, for which he won much glory and honor. But, striving toward God with all his heart, Saint Thomas forsook the world and its vanity, and was tonsured as a monk.

With great humility he visited several Elders, asking for guidance in the spiritual life. After several years, Thomas received a blessing to live a solitary life in the wilderness. According to his biographers, Saint Thomas said that he was led by a pillar of fire to Mount Maleos by the Prophet Elias, while in an ancient Syaxarion of Constantinople it is written that Saint Thomas also appeared as a pillar of fire when the Holy Prophet Elias appeared to him, whose zealous way of life he emulated.

Dwelling in complete seclusion, Saint Thomas fought with invisible enemies with as much courage as he had displayed against the visible foes of his country. Reports of Saint Thomas's holy life could not be concealed from those living in the surrounding area. People began to flock to him seeking spiritual guidance, and those who suffered from sickness recovered, since he received from God a blessing to heal their infirmities.

He was always helping others, because even during his solitude, he prayed for everyone, and he trained himself to become a worthy instrument of God for the benefit of his neighbor.

Many of the faithful received help through the prayers of the Righteous Thomas. Even after his repose in the X century, he continues to heal those who seek his aid, from every passion and sickness.

Some of the Saint's Holy Relics are located in the Metropolis of Monemvasia and Sparta. He is particularly venerated in Lakonia (Lakonίa).

Saint Acacius of Sinai lived during the sixth century and was a novice at a certain monastery in Asia. The humble monk distinguished himself by his patient and unquestioning obedience to his Elder, a harsh and dissolute man. He forced his disciple to toil excessively, starved him with hunger, and beat him without mercy. Despite such treatment, Saint Acacius meekly endured the affliction and thanked God for everything. Saint Acacius died after suffering these torments for nine years.

Five days after Acacius was buried, his Elder told another Elder about the death of his disciple. The second Elder did not believe that the young monk was dead. They went to the grave of Acacius and the second Elder called out: “Brother Acacius, are you dead?” From the grave a voice replied, “No, Father, how is it possible for an obedient man to die?” The startled Elder of Saint Acacius fell down with tears before the grave, asking forgiveness of his disciple.

After this he repented, constantly saying to the Fathers, “I have committed murder.” He lived in a cell near the grave of Saint Acacius, and he ended his life in prayer and in meekness. Saint John Climacus (March 30) mentions Saint Acacius in THE LADDER (Step 4:110) as an example of endurance and obedience, and of the rewards for these virtues.

Saint Acacius is also commemorated on November 29.

Saint Euphrosyne (Euphrosynē), in the world Eudokia, was the daughter of the Suzdal prince Demetrius Constantovich (+ 1383), and from 1367 was the wife of the Moscow Great Prince Demetrius of the Don. Their happy union was for Russia a pledge of unity and peace between Moscow and Suzdal.

Saint Alexis, Metropolitan of Moscow, and even Saint Sergius of Radonezh, who baptized one of the sons of Demetrius and Eudokia, had a great influence upon the spiritual life of Princess Eudokia. Saint Demetrius of Priluki (February 11) was the godfather of another son.

The holy princess was a builder of churches. In 1387 she founded the Ascension women’s monastery in the Moscow Kremlin. In 1395, during Tamerlane’s invasion into the southern regions of Russia, the Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God was transferred to Moscow upon her advice, miraculously defending the Russian land. During Lent, the princess secretly wore chains beneath her splendid royal garb. By her patronage the famous icon of the Archangel Michael was painted, and later became the patronal icon of the Kremlin’s Archangel Cathedral.

After raising five sons (a sixth died in infancy), the princess was tonsured as a nun with the name Euphrosyne. She completed her earthly journey on July 7, 1407 and was buried in the Ascension monastery she founded.

An old Russian church poem has survived, the lament of the princess for her husband, who had died at the age of thirty-nine.

Saint Euphrosyne is also commemorated on May 17.

The Holy Martyrs Peregrinus, Lucian, Pompeius, Hesychius, Papius, Saturninus and Germanus were natives of Italy. They suffered for Christ under the emperor Trajan in the city of Dyrrachium, located at the shore of the Adriatic sea.

Witnessing the martyrdom of Bishop Astius, who was crucified by the Romans, they openly praised the courage and firmness of the holy confessor. Because of this, they were seized, and as confessors of faith in Christ, they were drowned in the sea. Their bodies, carried to shore by the waves, were hidden in the sand by Christians. The martyrs appeared to the Bishop of Alexandria ninety years later, ordering him to bury their bodies and to build a church over them.

Saint Evangelicus, a follower of the holy Apostle Andrew (November 30), is the first known bishop of the diocese of Tomis (Constanța, pronounced: Constantsa) in Dacia Pontica (Lesser Scythia, or Dobrogea). He was active around the mouths of the Danube toward the end of the third century.

Bishop Evangelicus converted many pagans of Dacia Pontica to Christianity. He is mentioned in the account of the martyrdom of Saints Epictetus and Astion (July 8), where he is described as the founder of churches in the province. The parents of these holy martyrs were baptized by Saint Evangelicus after being converted by the priest Bonosus.

It is believed that Saint Evangelicus suffered martyrdom during the persecution of Diocletian (284-305).

Saint Kyriake was the only child of Dorotheus and Eusebia. Since she was born on a Sunday (Kyriake, in Greek), she was named Kyriake.

One day a wealthy magistrate wished to betroth Kyriake to his son. Not only was she young and beautiful, but her parents were wealthy, and the magistrate wished to control that wealth. The magistrate went to her parents to request her hand, but Saint Kyriake told him that she wished to remain a virgin, for she had dedicated herself to Christ.

The magistrate was angered by her words, so he went to the emperor Diocletian to denounce the saint and her parents as Christians who mocked the idols, and refused to offer sacrifice to them.

Diocletian sent soldiers to arrest the family and have them brought before him. He asked them why they would not honor the gods which he himself honored. They told him that these were false gods, and that Christ was the one true God.

Dorotheus was beaten until the soldiers grew tired and were unable to continue. Since neither flattery nor torment had any effect, Diocletian sent Dorotheus and Eusebia to Melitene on the eastern border between Cappadocia and Armenia. Then he sent Saint Kyriake to be interrogated by his son-in-law and co-ruler Maximian at Nicomedia.

Maximian urged her not to throw her life away, promising her wealth and marriage to one of Diocletian’s relatives if she would worship the pagan gods. Saint Kyriake replied that she would never renounce Christ, nor did she desire worldly riches. Enraged by her bold answer, Maximian had her flogged. The soldiers who administered this punishment became tired, and had to be replaced three times.

Shamed by his failure to overcome a young woman, Maximian sent Saint Kyriake to Hilarion, the eparch of Bithynia, at Chalcedon. He told Hilarion to either convert Kyriake to paganism, or send her back to him.

Making the same promises and threats that Diocletian and Maximian had made before, Hilarion was no more successful than they were. Saint Kyriake challenged him to do his worst, because Christ would help her to triumph. The saint was suspended by her hair for several hours, while soldiers burned her body with torches. Not only did she endure all this, she also seemed to become more courageous under torture. Finally, she was taken down and put into a prison cell.

That night Christ appeared to her and healed her wounds. When Hilarion saw her the next day, he declared that she had been healed by the gods because they pitied her. Then Hilarion urged her to go to the temple to give thanks to the gods. She told him that she had been healed by Christ, but agreed to go to the temple. The eparch rejoiced, thinking that he had defeated her.

In the temple, Saint Kyriake prayed that God would destroy the soulless idols. Suddenly, there was a great earthquake which toppled the idols, shattering them to pieces. Everyone fled the temple in fear, leaving Hilarion behind. Instead of recognizing the power of Christ, the eparch blasphemed the true God as the destroyer of his pagan gods. He was struck by a bolt of lightning and died on the spot.

Saint Kyriake was tortured again by Apollonius, who succeeded Hilarion as eparch. When she was cast into a fire, the flames were extinguished. When she was thrown to wild beasts, they became tame and gentle. Therefore, Apollonius sentenced her to death by the sword. She was permitted time to pray, so she asked God to receive her soul, and to remember those who honored her martyrdom.

Just as Saint Kyriake ended her prayer, angels took her soul before the soldiers could strike off her head. Pious Christians took her relics and buried them in a place of honor.

The Blachernae Icon of the Mother of God was discovered at Jerusalem by the empress Eudokia during the time of Saint Juvenal, Patriarch of Jerusalem (July 2), and Saint Euthymius the Great (January 20). The holy icon was sent to Constantinople, where the empress Pulcheria placed it in the Blacernae Church, where the Venerable Robe of the Mother of God (July 2) was preserved.

This holy icon is also called the Hodēgḗtria, or “She who leads the way.” It was with this icon that Patriarch Sergius (610-631) made the rounds of the walls of Constantinople in the year 626 with Moliebens during a siege of the capital by the Avars. In memory of this and other victories, which were won thanks to the intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos, an annual celebration was established on Saturday of the Fifth Week of the Great Fast to offer Praises to the Most Holy Theotokos (Saturday of the Akathist). At first the celebration took place only at the Blachernae church in Constantinople. In the ninth century the Feast was included in the Typikon of Saint Savva the Sanctified, and in the Studite Rule. Later, it was included in the Lenten Triodion and made universal for all the Orthodox Church.

After the Fall of Constantinople in 1453, the Blachernae Icon was transferred to Mt. Athos, and in 1654 it was sent by the Athonite monks to Moscow as gift to the Tsar Aleksei Mikhailovich.

The Blachernae Icon is celebrated on July 2, and in the Fifth Week of Great Lent (Saturday of the Akathist).

Saint Prosper (Prosper Tiro), "The Eradicator of Heresies," as Saint Photios (February 6) calls him, was born in the Aquitaine around the year 390. He was a renowned lay theologian, although few details of his life are known.

We know Saint Prosper chiefly from his writings. A contemporary writer described him as "a holy and venerable man." Many of Saint Prosper's writings echo the teaching of Saint Augustine (June 15) on grace. Like Saint Augustine, Saint Prosper was also an opponent of the Pelagian heresy. This wise man seems to have spent his life embroiled in controversies with heretics. For the semi-Pelagians in particular, Saint Prosper was one of their most fearsome adversaries.

In Saint Prosper, science was joined to virtue. It is evident that he applied himself to literature, and especially to acquiring knowledge of Holy Scripture. He was no less an expert in human sciences than he was in theology. He excelled particularly in mathematics, astronomy, and chronology. His great learning and holiness made him well known throughout the entire Church.

Saint Prosper has sometimes been identified, mistakenly, with Saint Paulinus of Reggio (June 25), who was a bishop. Everything we know about him leads us to believe that Saint Prosper was not a bishop, nor even a priest. In a poem to his wife he wrote: "Lift me up again if I fall; correct yourself if I point out some fault. Let it never be sufficient for us to be one body, let us also be one soul." By 428, Saint Prosper persuaded his wife to become a nun, and he entered a monastery at Marseilles. When Saint Leo the Great was chosen as the Bishop of Rome in 440, he sent for Prosper to become his secretary. Many historians believe that the admirable treatise "On the Incarnation of the Word," which is ascribed to Saint Leo, is actually the work of Saint Prosper. It is possible, however, that Saint Leo may have reworked it in his own style.

Saint Prosper reposed in Rome, sometime after 455.

The icon of Saint Prosper depicts him holding a scroll which reads: "The Orthodox Faith subdues the monster of heresy."