Pregnancy is the most important event and at the same time a difficult test for any woman. Childbirth for her becomes the climax of all the torment that she was doomed to because of the original sin of the foremother of our Eve. Therefore, it is somewhat arrogant, unreasonable and frivolous to approach this process without the Lord's blessing, prayers and intercession of the Holy Mother of God and all the holy patrons.
Miraculous icons, prayers of pregnant women, patrons
For many centuries, the Orthodox Mother of God has been venerated by Orthodox Christians, who became the embodiment of reverent respect for any woman as a future mother. The very process of procreation took place in the highest degree holy, it was equated with worship. The traditions that accompanied pregnancy and childbirth, and then upbringing, were transmitted from daughter to mother. The pregnant woman was obliged to lead a pious and respectable life. Inside her, at this time, God created a new human soul and body. Therefore, it was necessary to take care first of all of one’s spiritual condition, which did not allow vices and sins.
The icon of the pregnant Mother of God is one of the main images before which they pray in these crucial months. Mom and her baby at the most crucial moment will act, so to speak, in unison and together.
Prayer will surely give a woman peace, meekness, kindness, love and truthfulness. After all, now she is responsible not only for herself, but also for the constantly developing fetus inside her. Her thoughts and deeds must be pure. It is necessary to refrain from anger, irritation, pride, idle talk, envy, fear and gloom.
Many future mothers are wondering: is there an icon for pregnant women, to whom and how best to pray, so that the entire period of bearing a child before birth passes safely? To answer exactly these questions, we turn for help to a book called Full Orthodox Prayer Book for Every Need, which you should always have at home at hand.
Icon of the Blessed Virgin Mary, referred to as the “Quick Acolyte”
So, we open the chapter, which is called "Prayers of pregnant women for safe resolution and the birth of healthy children." And we see in front of which icons, which prayers are read.
Almost immediately, prayers go to the Most Holy Theotokos in front of her icon, called the “Quick Hearing”. The oldest icon, the prototype of which is now stored on Mount Athos, on the Holy Mountain, in the Dohiar Monastery. Its history goes back a thousand years ago (X century). According to legend, with the blessing of the founder of the monastery, the Monk Neophyte painted this icon. It is assumed that she became a list with the miraculous image of the Mother of God venerated in the city of Alexandria.
But these prayers will help reduce the suffering of a pregnant woman (they are also read when there is not enough milk for a woman in labor):
- Troparion, voice of the 4th: "To the Mother of God, the prince of the creature in distress ...".
- Kondak, voice of the 8th: "In the mori of the living conditions of overwhelming ...".
- Prayer: "Blessed the Lady, the Blessed Virgin Mary ...".
Icon of the Blessed Virgin Mary, called the “Healer”
Next in the prayer is the image of the Mother of God, known as the “Healer”. This is also an icon for a pregnant woman to pray for.
The history of its creation is associated with miracles that happened at the end of the 18th century in Moscow. One of the ministers of the church - Vincent of Bulveninsky - when entering and leaving the church knelt before the image of the Mother of God. Once he became very ill. His tongue turned black, severe pains began to make him unconscious. He began to pray to the Theotokos for her healing. Suddenly an angel appeared to him, after him the Virgin Mary herself came down from Heaven and healed him. Perfectly healthy Vincent immediately went to the service, the whole church brethren marveled at this miracle. And this was the reason for writing a beautiful icon.
Now the icon of the Virgin "Healer" can be seen in many hospital churches and chapels. The prayers that are read before her are as follows:
- Troparion, voice 4: "Like the Bright Star ...".
- Prayer: “Accept, O All-Blessed and Almighty Lady of the Lady of the Virgin Virgin ...”
Icon of the Mother of God, named "Theodore"
Next comes the icon that helps pregnant women, Our Lady of Theodorov. It is known that the evangelist Luke painted this icon. And then it is not known how she got to the small provincial town of Gorodets, where the first mention of her came from. In 1239, the Mongol-Tatars turned the city into ashes. But this holy image somehow mysteriously disappeared. He was later discovered by Prince Vasily Kostromskaya, brother of Alexander Nevsky. Hunting in the forest, he saw an icon on a tree, he wanted to take it off, but it hung in the air.
At the same time, the residents of Kostroma saw a warrior who walked and carried this icon in his hands. It was rumored that it was the great martyr Theodore Stratilat himself, in whose honor a local church was built in Kostroma.
Prince Vasily told the spiritual brethren about what had happened to him. Then they went to this place and began to pray for a long time on their knees. Only then could they remove this icon. Over time, a monastery was formed at this place.
On the reverse side of the image is the holy face of the martyr Paraskeva (Friday), who in Russia was revered as the patroness of brides and motherhood. It is from her that the girls are asking for a traveling husband, the infertile - for women's health and for conception.
Theodorov’s image of the Virgin is the oldest miraculous icon for pregnant women in Russia, an assistant in childbirth and child rearing. She is prayed for the formation of a prosperous married couple and the birth of healthy babies in her according to the following patterns:
- Troparion, voice 4: “By the coming of Your honest icon ...”.
- Kontakion 1st: "Climb the Governor, Immaculate Virgin Mary, Our Intercessor ...".
- Prayer: "To whom I will call, Lady ..."
There is another magnificent prayer of pregnant women for a safe resolution. It begins with the words: "Oh, Glorious Mother of God, have mercy on me, Your servant ..."
Rev. Melania Icon
In the prayer section for pregnant women, the name of St. Melania (Roman or Roman), which was born at the end of the 4th century, is also mentioned. Melania was to become the heiress of a huge fortune. At age 14, she was forcibly extradited as a close relative - Pinian. After the wedding, she invited her husband to live in abstinence, he agreed, but only before that he asked to give birth to two children. However, the children were not destined to live in this world. And Melania herself almost died after a second premature birth. Pinian realized that he was the cause of all her misfortunes, and then took a vow of chastity. When he died, he left his wife a huge fortune. Melania, having distributed all her property to the poor, began to build monasteries and temples throughout the district.
In Jerusalem, next to the Holy Sepulcher, there is a cave where St. Melania Her relics were also stored there. But then they were taken out by the crusaders, and now they are in Rome.
Prayers to Saint Melania:
- Troparion: "In you, Mati, it is known that you escaped ...".
- Kondak, voice 3-rd: "Virginity of purity beloved ...".
That's all for a prayer book about pregnant women. However, Orthodox women venerate other icons.
Icon of the Mother of God "Recovering the Baby"
In Byzantium, this image of the Virgin was revered as an ancient miraculous shrine. The "Baby Leap" icon is one of the most beloved among the Russian people. The icon was acquired in November 1795 by the Nikolo-Ugreshsky Monastery near Moscow, created by Dimitry Donskoy in connection with the victory on the Kulikovo Field. Before this image, many people received healing and help. Women mostly prayed for a cure for infertility, for a safe pregnancy or asked for health for a sick baby.
During the ruin of the monastery after the revolution in 1918, it disappeared. In 2003, this icon was returned by a pious family who bought it from a collector. Now it is stored in a monastery, in the Transfiguration Cathedral, and is the most revered. There are several varieties of the image of the icon of the Mother of God “Leap-back”, which are common on Mount Athos. Before her, pregnant women before childbirth read the prayer "Blessed Virgin, Mati ...".
Icon of the pregnant virgin
This icon belongs to the category of the rarest, but not the only ones. This type of icon painting is typical mainly for Athos and Georgia. It is on the Athos or Georgian icon of the baby Jesus that we do not see. Unfortunately, nobody knows the icon painter. The icon, where the Virgin is pregnant, is located in Greece, in the small church of Raphael in Raches, in a place with healing springs.
In orthodox icon painting is quite rare. But that's not the point. The fact is that the icon of the pregnant Mother of God is depicted with the baby Jesus. The main feature of this iconographic image is that in it all attention is focused on the maternal principle and the expectation of the coming of the Messiah.
The icon of the pregnant Mother of God was discovered in one of the monasteries in Western Georgia. When the repair was underway, they lifted the floor and there they found a whole repository of rare magnificent icons. Among them was the icon of Mary with Christ in the womb.
This gentle image of St. Mary helps all expectant mothers with offspring in the womb to safely pass the entire period and wait for timely delivery. And for those who have no children, finally find the joy of motherhood.
However, this is not the last answer to the question of which icon the pregnant women pray. There are many such images, only few people know about them.
Icon of the Mother of God, called the "Assistant in childbirth"
Today, in some pious families, you can see the amazing image of the Mother of God, called the "Assistant in childbirth" (this is also an icon for pregnant women). On it, Saint Mary is depicted in growth, her hands are frozen in a prayer gesture over the bosom of the Eternal Child of Christ.
In the moments of severe suffering of the birth of a baby, death becomes very close, and therefore a woman with fervent prayer resorts to the Savior and His Most Holy Mother with these words:
- Troparion, voice 4: "It is diligent to the Mother of God ...".
- Kondak, voice of the 6th: "The Intercession of Christians ...".
- And the magnificence: "We magnify, thee, the Most Holy Virgin ...".
There is a very similar to this image - the icon of the Virgin "Helper to the wives of the child of birth." Only here St. Mary has an open head and loose hair.
Any such icon for pregnant women is their assistant and patroness. The kind and pacified face of the Mother of God will give peace and joy to the expectant mother, and prayer will become more pure, confident and sincere.
In our article on the “Icon for Pregnant Women”, it is worth mentioning other icons that are no less important for the time of pregnancy and childbirth.
Icon of the righteous Joachim and Anna
The future parents of Blessed Mary - the holy forefathers Joachim and Anna, at the end of their life, having grown old, already had no hope for the birth of their own child. And only after God's blessing did their daughter Mary be born. However, before this event, they had to endure ridicule and contempt, since at that time, disgrace was a real shame for the couple.
They lived in Nazareth of Galilee. They did not grumble about their grief; they trusted in the will of the Lord and prayed earnestly. Once during a holiday, the righteous elder Joachim brought gifts to God to Jerusalem, but the priest did not take this unworthy sacrifice from God to a childless husband. Joachim could not stand it. Considering himself not a man pleasing to the Lord, he did not begin to return home, but decided to settle in a desert solitude. The righteous Anna, learning about the humiliation suffered by her husband, began to pray mournfully while in constant fast. The righteous Joachim prayed incessantly. And God finally heard them and sent them an angel who brought them good news that they would soon have a daughter who would be a blessing to the whole human race. After they took their Mary to the temple, both parents did not live long. When they died, St. Joachim was 80 years old, and St. Anna was 70 years old.
So this wonderful icon appeared. Praying to pregnant women in front of her is necessary so that God gives strength and blesses for a happy birth.
- Troparion, the voice of the 1st: "Even more legitimate ...".
- Kondak, voice 2-nd: "Anna is now rejoicing ...".
- Prayer: "Oh, the saints of Christ ...".
Icon of the Prophet Zechariah and Righteous Elizabeth
How can one not recall the pious couple of Zechariah and Elizabeth, to whom God gave John the Baptist? After all, they too, like the parents of the Virgin, prayed for a long time to the Lord that He would give them a child. And during the next service, the holy angel brought the message to Zechariah that his wife would soon give birth to a son and he would be great before the Lord. Zachariah doubted these words, since he had little faith in the fact that his elderly wife could still give birth. For this he was punished by mute until the moment when John the Baptist was born.
The following prayers are read before this icon:
- Troparion: “Priesthood by clothing ...”.
- Kondak: "The Prophet is here ...".
- Prayer: "Oh, holy servants of God, prophesy ...".
During pregnancy, one must know certain prayers to the Lord and the Virgin. And it’s better to read them every day. This should be done even if the pregnancy proceeds safely, since there is no guarantee of the easy and painless birth of a healthy, smart and pretty baby blessed by the Lord.
Is having a baby a miracle ?! The Lord does not grant such joy to everyone. But miracles exist for those who believe in them. After all, it is very important to know that whoever has faith in the Lord Almighty in his soul will increase, and whoever does not have it will take away the last. Praying sincerely and wholeheartedly, one must believe that God is merciful and omnipotent and that there is nothing for Him that He could not create.
Icon of St. Blessed Xenia
We will not re-describe the pious path of this great saint, but one event associated with the miracle-worker will seem very curious.
After the death of her husband Andrei Fedorovich, blessed Ksenia of Petersburg gave all her property to the poor. And she wrote off her home to Antonova Paraskeva, the woman who rented her room. Ksenia herself became a holy fool in the name of Christ. Soon, people began to notice that after meeting with her, their affairs were improving, and the patients received healing. Parents began to rush to her with sick children, since with her blessing they really recovered.
Once St. Ksenia saved the unborn child. One day, she suddenly came home to that very woman, Antonova Paraskeva, and cried out: “What are you sitting on, you are darning stockings and you don’t know at all that the Lord has sent your son! Rather go to the Smolensk cemetery. " The woman obeyed her blessed patroness, all excited and in perplexity she ran out of the house and quickly went to the cemetery. Suddenly she saw that a crowd of people had formed. As it turned out, the driver accidentally hit a pregnant woman, who later had a boy, and the poor herself died on the spot. Nobody was able to find her relatives, so Paraskeva took the baby to live with her and adopted, since she saw God's providence in this. She raised him in a Christian way, and a worthy and well-mannered man grew up who took care of his step-mother with great warmth and love until her very last days on earth.
Now the image of St. Blessed Ksenia is prayed by mothers who want their child to be born and grow up sensible and obedient. Like the son God sent to the childless Paraskeva. These prayers are:
- Troparion, 7th voice: "Poverty of Christ ...".
- Kondak, voice 3-rd: “Today he rejoices lightly ...”.
- Prayer: "Oh, holy all-blessed ...".
Conclusion
The names of the icons where the Virgin is depicted are many. And in fact, it does not matter what the name of the icon is. Pregnant women this fact can excite. But they must choose their icon with their hearts in order to fully trust it, choose the one that will be to their liking and before which they can calmly and reverently pray.
Pregnancy and childbirth are considered an event showing the divine greatness of life. Before giving birth, it is necessary to take a blessing from the priest and serve prayers and akathists in honor of the holy icons.
As an apple tree is decorated with its fruits, so a woman is decorated with children. In these moments, she herself becomes like a holy icon. Pregnant women (photos show that during this period they turn into the most beautiful, sweet and tender women) a little later they will meet with their baby. Is it not a miracle, is it not joy? The way such happiness never goes around your home!