Back in 1383, not far from the town of Tikhvin, the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God appeared. Its significance was very important, and it was for her that a beautiful temple and a small monastery were erected. But first things first.
History
There is an ancient legend according to which the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God, whose significance is hard to overestimate, is closely connected with the famous evangelist Luke. The image was painted by this Holy Apostle during the earthly life of the Mother of God.
Later, Luke gave the icon to Theophilus, who at that time ruled Antioch. It is known that the Holy Apostle attached the text of the Gospel to the image.
A few years later, the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God, the meaning of which has not changed at all over time, ended up in Constantinople. Here, a magnificent Blachernae church-reliquary was built for her, which later became a real repository of the most expensive shrines of Byzantium.
The further fate of the shrine
Further, according to legend, in 1383 this icon ended up on Tikhvin land. According to eyewitnesses,it happened in an absolutely incredible way: it was transported through the air from Constantinople to Holy Russia. In the sky over Ladoga, she was noticed by local fishermen, who, of course, were, to put it mildly, surprised by what they saw.
The fact that it was exactly a Byzantine shrine was confirmed by the Patriarch of Constantinople. He explained such a miracle as follows: “She irretrievably departed from Byzantium. For the pride, hatred and untruths of the people.”
How the miracle happened
In the morning, a crowd of people, led by local priests, gathered on the banks of the Tikhvinka River. They all began to pray fervently, and soon the icon of the Tikhvin Mother of God fell right into their hands. The significance of this truly miraculous event was enormous. Indeed, from Byzantium itself, this shrine “sailed” through the air! On the same day they decided to build a church. Decided on the place, cut down the forest, began the construction of the temple. In the evening, tired people began to go home. But the icon was not simply abandoned. They assigned guards to the construction site and to the icon.
But the guards fell asleep, and when they woke up, they found that there was neither construction nor the icon. People have gathered. They mourned the loss for a long time, and then decided to go in search of the shrine.
What was their surprise when they discovered that all the prepared logs and tools were waiting for them on the other side, and at the head of all this was the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God! It was hard not to understand the meaning of what had happened - thus the Mother of God chose a place for her temple. Soon it was here that a beautiful church flauntedAssumption.
Later, the wooden structure was replaced with a stone one and a small monastery was built nearby.
Icon theft
During World War II, the Germans ruthlessly ravaged villages, villages, towns, churches and monasteries. They did not spare this church either. The invaders took many icons from the devastated temple, including Tikhvinskaya.
In 1944, when the Nazis reached Riga, the icon ended up in a local church. The Germans "issued" her to the priests for the duration of the services, hoping that they would begin to support them. It is not known what would have become of this shrine if the Nazis had not accidentally forgotten it during the retreat.
Back to Russia
The image returned back to the city of Tikhvin only on June 23, 2004. By this time, the destroyed monastery was restored. July 9 - it was on this day many centuries ago that a shrine appeared over Tikhvin - a solemn liturgy was held led by Patriarch Alexy of Moscow and All Russia.
It is believed that the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God helps in children's illnesses, with restless sleep and whims. In addition, at an older age, when the child goes to school and makes friends, the image protects him from bad choices and helps to build relationships with parents.
