Widely revered throughout the Christian world, the Mother of God icon "Joy and Consolation" has been kept for many centuries on the holy Mount Athos in the church of the Vatopedi Monastery. The history of the founding of this monastery, as well as the writing of the image of the Most Holy Theotokos, is associated with traditions that have survived several historical eras and are filled with an indescribable feeling of centuries past.
Wonderful salvation of the prince
One of the legends that can be heard from the lips of the monastery inhabitants tells about where its so unusual name came from. It sends listeners to the end of the IV century, when the young prince Arkady ─ the son of the last ruler of the Roman Empire, Theodosius the Great ─ went on a sea voyage to the holy Mount Athos to bow to places that have become the earthly section of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Throughout the journey, the weather was excellent, and nothing foreshadowed disaster, when suddenly the sky darkened and a terrible storm broke out. This happened so unexpectedly that the courtiers did not have time to take the lad from the deck and hide him in the lower rooms of the ship. As a result of the impact of the rolling wave, he was washed overboard and disappeared into the deep sea.
What happened terrified everyone who was on the ship at that moment, because they understood that the emperor’s anger would inevitably fall upon them. In addition, everyone sincerely mourned the young prince, whom they no longer hoped to see alive. Nevertheless, as soon as the storm calmed down, the travelers moored to the shore along which their path ran, and carefully examined the bushes that covered it, hoping to find at least the body of the lad thrown out by the waves.
What was their joy when they discovered Arkady not only alive, but absolutely unscathed! He was sleeping peacefully under one of the bushes. As the young man later told, being on the verge of death, he retained the presence of spirit and prayerfully appealed to the Most Holy Theotokos, asking for her intercession. A cry emanating from children's lips was heard, and at the same time an unknown force seized Arkady and, passing through a storm and darkness, lowered him to the seashore, where, weary of experienced emotions, he fell asleep under a bush.
The foundation and further fate of the monastery
Hearing such a marvelous tale, Emperor Theodosius the Great, the father of the boy, ordered the church to be erected at the site of his miraculous salvation, which since then began to be called Vatopedi, which in translation means "The bush of a lad." Over time, a monastery was built there, then destroyed by foreigners who harbored enmity towards the faith of Christ.
For several centuries, the monastery lay in ruins, until in the middle of the X century, three pious husbands who arrived from Adrianapol for this purpose took up its restoration. History has brought us their names. They were rich, but who wanted to leave the vanity of the world, the Greek nobles: Athanasius, Anthony and Nikolai.
In historical documents, the first mention of the monastery, in which the Icon of the Mother of God "Joy and Consolation" is now kept, dates back to 985. It is also known that shortly after this began its rapid rise, which allowed ten years later to become one of the main monasteries of the Holy Mountain. The monastery holds such a high position to this day, despite the fact that its history is marked by a series of ups and downs. A photo of the monastery is presented above.
The monastery, which became a fortress
Visiting the monastery, you can hear the legend associated with its main shrine ─ Vatopedi icon of the Mother of God "Joy and Consolation." Her story is also very unusual. This image was painted at the end of the XIV century and for a long time was placed in the narthex of the cathedral church, not particularly distinguishing itself from its other shrines, until a miracle happened that glorified it throughout the Christian world.
In those ancient times, the Vatopedi Monastery, as well as the other cloisters of the Holy Mountain, was often attacked by robbers who wanted to profit from the treasures stored in it. For this reason, powerful walls were erected around it, giving the monastery the appearance of a fortification. Every evening, its gates were locked and opened only the next day after the matins. It was accepted that after the divine service, the gatekeeper came to the abbot, who sent the keys to him.
Animated icon
And then one day, when the monks had already left the church and the abbot was ready, as usual, to order the monastery gates, the icon of the Virgin "Joy and Consolation" located near him on the wall suddenly came to life. Turning her Most Holy Eyes to the monk, the Virgin ordered him not to open the gates, because this morning robbers were hiding behind them, waiting only for a convenient moment to break into the monastery and begin the robbery. Moreover, the Queen of Heaven told all the inhabitants to climb the monastery walls and repulse uninvited guests.
Before the abbot had time to recover from what he saw and heard, the icon of "Joy and Consolation" shocked him with a new miracle. The baby Jesus, sitting on Mother’s lap, suddenly came to life, and raising His Most Pure Face to Her, forbade warning the brethren of danger, since the attack of the robbers was a sentence of punishment for sins and neglect on the basis of the sacred vows.
However, to the great amazement of the monk, the Mother of God, with true maternal boldness, turned aside the hand of the Son raised to Her mouth, and, somewhat deviating to the right, repeated her command not to open the gates, and to convene the monks to protect the monastery. At the same time, She ordered the whole brethren to repent of their sins, because Her Son is angry with them.
Icon that has become the main shrine of the monastery
After these words, the figures of the Virgin and Her Eternal Child, depicted on the icon of "Joy and Consolation", froze again, but her appearance changed. The face of the Blessed Virgin forever remained a little deviated to the right and filled not only with motherly love, but also with unlimited indulgence. The hand of the Virgin at the same time froze, as if holding the handle of the Baby, who is not childishly staring from the icon. It is also known that the icon received the name "Joy and Consolation" precisely after it miraculously saved the monks from the attack of the robbers.
Previously, this image was placed in the cathedral narthex, but after the miracle that made it truly miraculous, it was transferred to the paraclis (temple) of the Icon of the Mother of God “Joy and Consolation”, which was erected specially for him, where it is still located. For all the centuries that have passed since that time, an unquenchable lamp burns in front of him and services are held daily. From ancient times, there is also a tradition to perform monastic tonsures before this icon.
Source of Divine Grace
The value of the Icon of the Mother of God “Joy and Consolation” for the monastery is truly invaluable, and it lies not only in the fact that thanks to it it gained worldwide fame, but also in the inexhaustible stream of divine grace emanating from it. Every year the list of only officially registered and noted in special books miracles revealed by the prayers offered before this image is enlarged, and how many of them remain hidden from the general public! It is no coincidence that the Vatopedi Monastery became one of the largest Christian pilgrimage centers.
Lists of the Vatopedi Icon in Russian Churches
In Russia, the icon "Joy and Consolation" has been known since ancient times. It is believed that this happened in the first half of the 16th century due to the outstanding religious leader, writer and publicist ─ Rev. Maxim the Greek. On his initiative in 1518, two lists were made from Athos to Russia, made from the miraculous icons of the Vatopedi Monastery, among which was “Joy and Consolation”. Numerous miracles of healing, revealed through prayers in front of her, brought the icon wide fame and became an occasion to venerate it as miraculous.
In the XVII century, the list of the Vatopedi icon "Joy and Consolation" was moved to Rostov, where it is still located in one of the churches of the Spaso-Yakovlevsky Monastery. From him, in turn, a lot of copies were made, distributed throughout Russia. One of them was a cell icon of St. Demetrius of Rostov, who went down in the history of the Russian Orthodox Church as an outstanding religious writer, preacher and teacher.
Among the numerous lists of icons "Joy and Consolation", photos of which are presented in the article, there are some that deserve special fame. This is, first of all, the image stored in Moscow in the temple on the Khodynsky field (the photo of the temple was translated above). There he was brought in June 2004 by a delegation of inhabitants of the Vatopedi Monastery who arrived in the capital to celebrate the memorial day of Athos saints. The icon was delivered to the place of its current stay in a solemn procession, at least 20 thousand people took part in it.
In addition, there are two lists located in St. Petersburg. One of them was placed in the Kazan Cathedral of the Novodevichy Convent, and the other - in the church of the icon "Joy and Consolation" on Dybenko Street. The icon, exported to Belarus, stored today in the Lyadan Holy Annunciation Monastery, also enjoys deep respect among the people.
The meaning of the Icon of the Mother of God “Joy and Consolation” in the life of the Russian Orthodox Church is very great, and there is a lot of evidence to this. It is enough to recall how, in 1852, the Athos elder Seraphim Svyatrets, now glorified as a saint, sent a list of the Vatopedi icon to the Novodevichy Convent of St. Petersburg. On its reverse side, he personally wrote an inscription stating that this miraculous image of the Most Holy Theotokos will abundantly pour Divine grace on all those who flow to it. And his words were further confirmed by those miracles that the Queen of Heaven revealed through him.
How does the icon “Joy and Consolation” help?
Answering this question, it is appropriate, first of all, to recall the significant event that served as the reason for its glorification ─ the salvation of Mount Athos from the villains. Based on this, all subsequent centuries, Orthodox Christians prayed before the Vatopedi Icon for deliverance from the attack of robbers and the invasion of aliens.
Before the icon "Joy and Consolation" it is also customary to pray to the Queen of Heaven for deliverance from various diseases and infirmities. In addition, it has long been noted that it carries help with epidemics that have repeatedly visited Russian soil and claimed thousands of lives. In this regard, every time the Lord allowed a plague, cholera, or pestilence to happen for human sins , having served a moleben, the Orthodox procession surrounded the icon around the infected city, and if their repentance was deep and sincere, then the disease receded.
There is much evidence that prayers in front of the Vatopedi Icon protected people from fires, floods and other life unhappiness. They greatly contribute to the organization of various daily activities and finding peace of mind. This, in particular, is indicated in the troparion of the icon "Joy and Consolation." It also contains petitions for the extinction of the sinful flame, the healing of spiritual ulcers, the strengthening of faith, the purification of thoughts, as well as the granting of humility, love, patience and the rooting of the fear of God in the hearts.
The Year of Life Granted by the Virgin
In addition, miracles revealed through prayers, ascended both in front of the original icon, stored to this day on Athos, and in front of its many lists, became widely known. The most famous of them is an entry in the book of the Vatopedi Monastery, dated to the beginning of the last century. It tells how a certain monk named Neophyte received instruction from the abbot to go to one of their courtyards, located on the island of Ebway in the Mediterranean Sea.
During the sea voyage, the monk fell ill, and, having arrived on the island, barely kept his feet. Anticipating a near demise, he offered prayers to the Most Holy Theotokos in front of the list with the Vatopedi icon in the courtyard. The monk prayed to prolong his days so that, having fulfilled obedience, he could return to his abode and complete the earthly journey in it. Before he had time to rise from his knees, he heard a wonderful voice coming from heaven and commanding him to obey, return to the monastery, but after a year be ready to appear before the gates of eternity.
The disease immediately left the sufferer, and he exactly fulfilled everything that his father had entrusted to him by the abbot. After that, he safely returned to the Vatopedi Monastery, where he spent a year in fasting and prayer. After the expiration of the time, standing in front of the icon “Joy and Consolation”, he suddenly again heard a voice familiar to him, announcing that the hour of his death was already near. Immediately after these words, the monk felt how the forces leave him. Having hardly reached his cell, the Neophyte summoned a brotherhood, and, lying on his deathbed, told them of the miracle revealed by his prayer. After that, he peacefully departed to the Lord.
The tears exuded by the icon
Later evidence is also available. So, in 2000, the monk of the Kikk monastery in Cyprus, Stillianus, during a night prayer, witnessed how the faces of the Infant Jesus and His Most Holy Mother on the icon suddenly came to life and were transformed, and tears flowed plentifully from Their eyes. Struck by what he saw, the monk was speechless, and found it again only after the whole brethren went around the monastery in procession, carrying this miraculous image in front of him.
The miracles revealed in Russia are evidenced by numerous entries in the monastery and parish books. They help to further understand the meaning of the icon "Joy and Consolation" and the place it occupies in Russian iconography.