Icon of the Albazin Mother of God: history, discovery, what helps, prayers

The Albazin Icon of the Mother of God “The Word Became Flesh” has great religious significance in the Amur region. It got its name from the Russian fortress Albazin (now the village of Albazino) on the Amur River, founded in 1651 by the famous Russian border chieftain Ierofei Khabarov on the site of the settlement of the Daurian prince Albazy.

Mystery of origin

In fact, there is no information about when the image was painted. It is unknown who its author was. Experts say that the image is more than 400 years old.

And this is his story. From time immemorial there have been attacks on Rus'. And the middle of the 17th century was no exception. The Chinese could not calm down. They really wanted to conquer the Albazin fortress. It is now impossible to count how many attacks and provocations were committed by the invaders.

In the end, the Chinese managed to accomplish their plan. The fortress was burned. But time passes, the year 1665 comes. It was then that Albazin was restored. Ardent faith in the intercession of the Mother of God is all that helps people in their confrontation with the Chinese.

A very difficult time has come. Soldiers and civilians needed strengthening of spirit. It was then that an old man named Ermogen came to Albazin. He was the founder of the Ust-Kirensky Monastery. The elder brings icons with him. Among them is the icon of the Albazin Mother of God.

In 1671, Ermogen founded a monastery near Albazin. He was one of the first on the Amur. The elder lived in the monastery until 1680, where the icon of the Albazin Mother of God, or “The Word became Flesh” (its second name), was also located there.

But the Chinese are not calming down. The raids continue. The elder leaves the monastery. And the icon is taken to Sretensk in order to preserve it from encroachment by the Chinese.

XX century

Religious processions are performed with the icon of the Albazin Mother of God. Prayers are held before it. Since the beginning of the 20th century, annual religious processions across the Far East begin. In those places where it was impossible to walk with the icon, it was transported by ship or train.

Time passes, a revolution is coming. Everyone knows about its consequences for Orthodoxy. Blagoveshchensk was not spared the consequences either. The cathedral was blown up in 1924.

They managed to hide the icon of the Albazin Mother of God. Now she has found a place in the Elias Chapel.

The godless government was not going to come to its senses. Temples were closed and destroyed, and church utensils were destroyed. The icon was lucky; it was taken to the Amur Regional Museum of Local Lore. This happened in 1938.

Veneration in Orthodoxy

The Albazin icon is an important shrine for Orthodox Christians. The rare iconographic plot and miracles make this image completely unique. The veneration of relics is a long-standing tradition of the inhabitants of the Far East. The glory of this sanctuary as a protector of local lands is reflected in legends and traditions. Therefore, the celebration of Icon Day is included in the list of memorable dates in the Amur Region.

“The word was flesh” is important not only for Christians living on the banks of the Amur, but also for all Orthodox Christians in Russia. Therefore, in the early 2000s, even before the icon was transferred to the Annunciation Cathedral, it was taken with a religious procession to Moscow and other cities. By the grace of God, the precious image of the Most Holy Theotokos performed many miracles.

The holiday takes place annually on March 22, that is, March 9 according to the old style. On this day the icon is glorified and akathist prayers are read in front of it. People thank the Heavenly Queen for her help and care. In the Amur region, festive festivities are taking place in honor of the holy image.

90s

The era of godlessness has passed. For almost 70 years people lived hiding their faith. And others renounced her out of fear.

The “dashing 90s” have arrived. The time of banditry, tyranny and the opening of churches. Believers began to receive their parishes back. And the remaining shrines accordingly.

The Icon of the Albazin Mother of God was returned to the Russian Orthodox Church in 1991. From that time to this day, it has been located in the Annunciation Cathedral, restored in the distant 90s.

Icon of the Mother of God “THE SIGN” (ALBAZINSKAYA, THE WORD IS FLESH TO BE)

March 22 (March 9, old style)

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According to iconography, it is an excerpt from the icon of the Mother of God “The SIGN”. The name of the icon of the Mother of God, depicting the womb of the Divine Child, is the first words of the Gospel of John: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” At the birth of the Baby Jesus, the Incarnation of God took place, that is, the Word became flesh, in Church Slavonic - “The Word became flesh.”

The Albazin Icon of the Mother of God “The Word became Flesh” is named after the Russian fortress Albazin (now the village of Albazino) on the Amur, founded in 1650 by the famous Russian explorer Ataman Erofei Khabarov on the site of the town of the Daurian prince Albazy.

The icon was brought to the Amur in 1665 by the blessed elder Hermogenes from the Kyrene Holy Trinity Monastery. More than once the Albazin fortress was attacked by the Chinese, but each time the invisible Protection of the Virgin Mary protected the Albazinians from cruel enemies. But the small forces of the Cossack garrison were not enough, and in August 1690 the fortress was abandoned.

The Albazin Icon of the Mother of God was transferred to Sretensk, a city on the Shilka River, which flows into the Amur. In the 19th century, when a new era of development of the Amur region began, the holy icon was transferred from Sretensk to the cathedral of the newly founded city of Blagoveshchensk. Soon, Bishop Gury of Kamchatka established the day of celebration of the icon - March 9.

In 1900, during the Boxer Rebellion in China, the wave of rebellion reached the Russian border. Chinese troops unexpectedly appeared near Blagoveshchensk. For 19 days the enemy stood in front of the city, threatening an invasion of the Russian coast. In the Annunciation Cathedral, a service was continuously going on, akathists were read in front of the miraculous icon “The SIGN” of ALBAZIN “THE WORD IS THE FLESH TO BE” . The enemy, not daring to cross the Amur, moved away from the city.

On October 5, 1916, the Amur Railway Bridge was consecrated with the icon of the Sign, which completed the 25-year construction of the Trans-Siberian Railway. Since 1938, the icon of the Mother of God was in the Amur Regional Museum of Local Lore, in 1991 it was returned to the Russian Orthodox Church and placed in a place of honor in the Annunciation Cathedral.

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Prayer to the Mother of God in front of Her icon, called the SIGN of “Albazin” or “The Word became flesh”

Virgin Mary, Immaculate Mother of Christ our God, Intercessor of the Christian race! Standing before Thy miraculous icon, our fathers prayed to Thee to show Thy protection and intercession to the Amur country. In the same way, we now pray to Thee: preserve our city and this country from the presence of foreigners and save from internecine warfare. Grant peace to the world, abundance of fruits to the land; preserve in sanctity our shepherds, those who labor in holy churches: protect the builders and their benefactors with Thy almighty protection. Confirm our brethren in orthodoxy and unanimity; bring to their senses those who have erred and departed from the Orthodox faith and unite them with the Holy Church of Your Son. Be to all who flock to your miraculous icon protection, consolation and refuge from all evils, troubles and circumstances, for you are healing for the sick, consolation for the grieving, correction and admonition for the lost. Accept our prayers and lift them up to the Throne of the Most High, so that by Thy intercession and by Thy protection we may glorify the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

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Interesting Facts

The first mention of the miraculous properties of the icon dates back to 1900. When there was a Russian-Chinese conflict, our opponents fired at Blagoveshchensk across the Amur. The Cathedral with the icon of the Albazin Mother of God was in the line of fire. Remarkably, he was not injured during the shelling. And the city remained practically untouched.

As the attacking Chinese later recalled, a very beautiful woman appeared in front of them several times. She was holding a child in her arms. Because of their feelings of pity for their mother, the Chinese were unable to conduct aimed fire.

And the second miracle happened in our time. It was 2013. A terrible flood began in the Far East. And what were people supposed to do? Just pray, trusting in the mercy of God. And Bishop Lucian made a decision: to fly around the most affected places with the icon “The Word became Flesh.” Two days passed after such a “heavenly religious procession”. And the water stopped coming. This fact is officially registered.

A Hearer of Fervent Prayers A story from a parishioner of St. Vladimir's parish in the village of Magdagachi.

“In 1998, my three-year-old grandson Sergei began to grow a bone on the back of his hand. When I was going to visit my daughter in the city of Blagoveshchensk, I took Seryozha with me. Soon after arriving in the city, we went to church with him. Both he and I were baptized by that time. I took Seryozha to the Albazin Icon of the Mother of God and told him to repeat after me: “Mother of God, heal my hand so that a bone does not grow on my hand.” My grandson repeated these words after me, looking at the icon. I picked him up, he kissed the icon and, at my prompting, put his hand on the icon for a few seconds. I also asked the Most Holy Theotokos to heal my grandson’s hand and kissed the Shrine. Over the next few days, the bone on Sergei’s hand remained unchanged, neither increasing nor decreasing. Then I forgot about it and when I met my grandson I didn’t examine his hand.

A month after visiting church, I began to examine his hand, trying to find a bone. But she wasn't there. The hand was as if the bone that had never caused us so much trouble had never grown on it.”

What are they praying for? Prayer text

In front of the icon they pray for help, asking for a safe release from the burden. The prayer to the icon of the Albazin Mother of God is presented below:

Virgin Mary, Most Immaculate Mother of Christ our God, Intercessor of the Christian race! Standing before Thy miraculous icon, our fathers pray to Thee to show Thy protection and intercession to the Amur country. In the same way, we now pray to Thee: preserve our city and this country from the presence of foreigners and save from internecine warfare. Grant the world peace, the land of fruits in abundance; preserve our shepherds in the sanctuary, the toiling ones in the holy temples: protect the builders and their benefactors with your almighty protection. Confirm our brothers in orthodoxy and unanimity: bring to their senses those who have gone astray and have departed from the Orthodox faith and unite them to the Holy Church of Your Son. Be the protection, consolation and refuge from all evils, misfortunes and circumstances to all who flock to your miraculous icon, for you are healing for the sick, consolation for the afflicted, correction and admonition for the lost. Accept our prayers and lift them up to the Throne of the Most High, for by your intercession we are observed and by your protection in the fall, let us glorify the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages. ́v. Amen.

Prayer to the Mother of God in front of Her Albazin Icon “The Word became Flesh”

Mother of God Mother of God, Immaculate Mother of God of Christ our God, Intercessor of the Christian race! Before the arrival of Your miraculous icon, our fathers praise You that Your protection and intercession of the land of Amursta will appear. We now pray the same to you: save our city and this country from alien hunting and internal wars. Give the world peace, a land of abundant fruits; Keep in holiness our shepherds working in the holy churches: in the fall, under the almighty protection of your builders and their benefactors. Confirmation in Orthodoxy and unanimity of our brothers: give understanding to those who are mistaken and have turned away from the Orthodox faith and unite the Holy Hierarch of the Church of Your Son. Be everything that flows to the miraculous icon of Your covering, consolation and refuge from all troubles, troubles and circumstances, You are the sick, the healing, the grieving consolation, the wrong correction and instruction. Accept our prayers and lift me up to the Almighty Throne, as from your image we can observe and shade you with your veil, we glorify the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and forever. Amen.

Miracles from the icon

The Diocese of Annunciation has collected many stories about miracles performed before the image.

Let's start with the recent past. This happened in 2015. A woman named Inessa could have been fired. For her, this was tantamount to death. She was on the verge of despair. She went to the Annunciation Cathedral to see the icon of the Albazin Mother of God. How the woman cried and begged for help, only she knows.

At this time, a woman approached her. She warmly hugged and consoled. She said that the Mother of God would not leave Inessa. And so it happened. Help was immediate. For Inessa, this was a real miracle and salvation.

Another resident of Blagoveshchensk testifies that after a prayer service in front of the miraculous icon, her son found a good job in his specialty.

And the most touching story happened at the end of 1990. A man named Yuri's mother fell ill. Oncology is a death sentence for an elderly woman. Yuri asked the servant of the temple, in which the Albazin icon was then located, to pour him some oil from her lamp. In exchange I gave him a bottle of excellent oil.

He sent the resulting treasure to his mother in another city. He told her to apply it regularly and add it to her food. Yuri did not specify where this oil came from.

The mother followed her son's recommendations. She began to improve and the pain went away. And most importantly, doctors have recorded a positive trend. Yuri's mother lived another 13 years after that. She died from a completely different disease.

Meaning

The first title of the Albazin icon, “The Word became flesh,” is a quotation from the Gospel of John: “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14).

“Word” is one of the names of God the Son, Messiah, Christ. The image, historically associated with the birth of the Amur region as a Russian land, testifies to the most important event in the history of mankind - the Birth of the Creator and Savior of the World.

The Infant Jesus in the icon holds a scroll in his left hand - another symbol of the Word. The right one blesses the people looking at Him, for whose sake He “made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a servant, becoming in the likeness of men, and becoming in appearance like a man” (Phil. 2:7).

The Albazin icon is, first of all, about the Incarnation. And also about the fact that the feat of the Mother of God elevated Her above the cherubim and seraphim, and that She is the Intercessor of people, spreading Her Motherly Cover over them.