Many of our contemporaries visit Orthodox churches. They discovered the power of prayer, turning to the Lord and the Sacraments of the Church.
In prayer they turn not only to God: they pray to the Heavenly Powers - the angels who, after Baptism, are assigned to every Orthodox Christian - and, of course, to the Mother of God, the Mother of God and the Intercessor of the entire human race before God. Dear Brothers and Sisters, we will be very glad if you subscribe to our group in, there you will find even more prayers, icons and other interesting information, here is the address link - Orthodox group! We are also pleased to remind you that on the pages of our church store you can find all possible Orthodox goods!
It would seem, why pray to anyone else but God. However, in the family we make requests not only to our father, but also to our mother and brothers and sisters. The Most Holy Theotokos and the saints become such relatives for every believer - people who performed feats for the sake of God and for the sake of helping other people. They are our intercessors before the merciful Lord.
Where is
Currently, the holy image is kept on the territory of the St. Sophia Cathedral, where anyone can turn to the Mother of God and ask her for help. However, there are other places where the Unbreakable Wall was previously kept:
- Monastery of the Mother of God, located in the Krasnodar region;
- Kaliningrad chapel at the Cathedral;
- Moscow temple named in honor of Paul and Peter;
- Nativity Church of Our Lady.
Prototype of the “Unbreakable Wall” icon in the mosaic of the Hagia Sophia Cathedral
The temple, erected in honor of St. Sophia, cannot but cause delight in any person who has once visited these walls. It is not for nothing that this architectural ensemble is included in the list of world heritage monuments: the five-nave temple, crowned with thirteen domes, masterfully combines the best trends of Russian architecture.
The majestic monumentality of the cathedral and the exquisite festivity of the interior make the temple the real heart of the city: there is a legend among Kiev residents that their beloved city will live and prosper as long as this cathedral lives and operates, and as long as the integrity of the famous “Unbreakable Wall” mosaic is preserved. That is why in the memory of the people this image of the Mother of God is associated with intercession and patronage. The Most Pure Virgin protects and preserves both the city itself and the families of its inhabitants. For this reason, the Virgin Mary is approached not only with requests to protect the state from external intervention, but also with prayers for the preservation and strengthening of the marriage union.
The Cathedral of St. Sophia itself was repeatedly subjected to serious destruction and looting: it suffered both from the raids of the Pechenegs and Polovtsians, and from the attacks of the Tatar-Mongol yoke. The temple survived during the Second World War, when the city was subjected to particularly heavy bombing by the German invaders. However, no matter what formidable forces the enemy possessed, for many centuries the wall located above the main altar of the temple was not damaged. It is there that the famous mosaic is located, which in any circumstances was and remains unharmed.
What can you ask for before the image?
Every Orthodox believer must figure out in advance what they can ask the holy image for.
Helps with travel
Often prayer texts are said to the Mother of God before leaving their home for a long time. Therefore, people who are going to go on a work trip or a long trip should first pray to the Unbreakable Wall icon. In this case, the first prayer service is read on the day of departure. In the process of saying prayer, you must ask the Mother of God to protect the abandoned housing. You can also pray while traveling.
After returning home, you should thank the Mother of God for her help.
About protecting home and family
Many believers pray to the Unbreakable Wall to ask for protection of their family and home. However, the face of the Mother of God is capable of protecting a home even without saying a prayer. To do this, just hang it on the wall located opposite the front door. The clergy recommend hanging the image of the saint before leaving, when the home is left unattended for a long time. Before hanging an icon, they must pray to it and ask for protection.
If a loved one suffers grief or illness
Close people often face illnesses and other unpleasant grief throughout their lives. To protect loved ones from misfortune, it is recommended to regularly pray to the face of the Holy Mother of God. The prayer service must be read while standing in front of the image of the Holy Mother of God. At the same time, one must pray sincerely, with faith in the spoken words. If the prayer text is pronounced without faith, the prayer will not work and will not help in any way.
In case of family disagreements
In young married couples, disagreements often arise, due to which the relationship between people begins to deteriorate. To cope with emerging problems, people often visit specialists. However, they do not always help and therefore you have to turn to faith. Prayer to the icon of the Unbreakable Wall can restore the family and eliminate all differences that have arisen. However, the married couple will have to read the prayer service together. At the same time, they both must sincerely want to restore the family.
Soon to get married
Many young girls dream of finding a good guy to marry him in the future. However, some have difficulty finding a husband. Girls who cannot cope with this problem on their own turn to the face of the Mother of God for help. A correctly read prayer in front of the icon will help in finding a young man whom you can marry in the future.
Family happiness
Family happiness is what not only young girls, but also boys dream about. However, not all people manage to live a happy family life, so they have to achieve happiness in different ways. One of the methods for achieving family happiness is turning to the Mother of God. Before praying to her, they place an icon with the image of the saint in front of them. Prayer words addressed to the image are considered more effective.
Conception and pregnancy
Most married couples sooner or later decide to have a baby. However, problems may arise, since not all girls manage to get pregnant. People who have encountered problems with conception should periodically turn to the face of the Mother of God. Reading a prayer can speed up the process of conception significantly.
The meaning of the icon of the Mother of God “The Unbreakable Wall”
The sacred understanding of this holy image is simple - the need to protect the house and the people living in it. Thus, the “Unbreakable Wall” icon helps to protect yourself from various negative influences. It was made by the hands of Russian and Byzantine masters, and later became a real model for imitation and copying, thanks to which many images of the Blessed Virgin were created.
The military and people engaged in similar activities attach particular importance to the “Unbreakable Wall” icon.
There is a lot of evidence about how the military themselves, who participated in the hostilities and saw the Virgin on the battlefields precisely in the pose of Oranta, facing the opponents.
Oranta is the Virgin Mary depicted without a baby. She stands and spreads her arms to the heavens. This is the canonical spelling of the image and the history of the “Unbreakable Wall” icon goes back to the very first versions of the image. She is usually dressed in a dress of heavenly color, and there is a blue glow around her, making her stand out from the rest and emphasizing the heavenly grace. She wears a handkerchief in her belt, which she uses to wipe away the tears of sad people.
As a rule, the canonical image includes a medallion with the Savior on the chest, a blue lower dress (a symbol of purity) and a red upper dress, which indicates the high position and suffering of the Mother of God.
Similar icons, such as the “Unbreakable Wall,” must be hung at home in front of the entrance to the apartment. She must protect the house and not let enemies into it. It is recommended to hang it at home when you are going to leave it for a long time. In addition, it is customary to pray in front of the “Unbreakable Wall” before leaving the house.
It helps to pray in front of the “Unbreakable Wall” icon in order to protect yourself from various negative influences. Candles are often lit for someone in a church, so that the Mother of God protects these people. It is also good to choose where to hang the “Unbreakable Wall” icon in the work space, for example, in the company’s office. Then the company will be protected by the Most Pure Virgin. If the workers are believers, they will also be able to say prayers in front of this image.
Where to find miracle lists
Nowadays, finding miracle lists is not as easy as it used to be. The main one is located in St. Sophia Cathedral, which is located in Kyiv. However, lists can be found not only in this temple, as there are other places. For example, there are miraculous lists in the Kaliningrad Cathedral, in the convent in Astrakhan and in the Moscow Church of Peter and Paul.
Churches and revered lists - what miracles does the “Unbreakable Wall” icon perform?
Although the main temple of the shrine has always been the St. Sophia Cathedral, a church was also built in her honor in the Crimean village of Gaspra (12 km from Yalta), the Absheron Convent (Kuban), the Kaliningrad Cathedral, and the Church of the Apostles Peter and Paul in Lefortovo.
A copy of the icon is also available in the Resurrection-Myrrh-Bearing Convent (village Nikolskoye, Astrakhan region). This shrine has a very unusual history - in 1906 it was donated to the monastery by St.
St. John of Kronstadt, but after the October Revolution the temple was looted and most of the images were destroyed. The same fate would have befallen the list of the “Unbreakable Wall” if it had not been hidden in her house by the pious Christian Maria Anshakova, who lived in the neighboring village of Zlatozubovka. She kept the relic until 1972, when Archpriest Pavel Ryabykh (he later accepted the rank of schema-abbot, taking the name Paisius) began to restore the church. Then the village woman presented the priest with a board darkened by time with the face of the Most Pure Virgin. The abbot thanked him and included the image in the catalog of icons, but hung it in the far corner of the temple. The shrine hung there for more than 30 years - until in 2001 it revealed its miraculous properties. Agrippina Eremeeva from a neighboring village suffered for a long time from the gradual deterioration of her vision associated with her old age. She earnestly prayed to the Mother of God, asking Her to heal the illness. And one day the old woman had a dream in which the Heavenly Queen commanded her to bow before the icon kept in the monastery. When the elderly woman told the abbot about this, he took care of the restoration of the relic - this is how its true story was revealed.
Since then, parishioners began to treat the shrine with great reverence. Through her, several more miracles were revealed - for example, she cured a cancer patient, eased the repentance of a murderer, helped find a son who had disappeared more than 10 years ago, and reconciled a constantly quarreling husband and wife.
Examples of miracles
The Icon of the Unbreakable Wall is known for its ability to perform miracles if you pray to it periodically. For example, the most famous miracles are associated with the holy list, which was created for the Resurrection-Myrrh Monastery. In the temple, where the image of the Mother of God has been kept for the last 50 years, several miracles have occurred during this time. With her help, spouses and relatives were repeatedly reconciled. Also, prayer to the saint’s face helped to find a person who was considered missing for more than ten years.
Origin of the icon
According to Orthodox tradition, one day Elder Gabriel from the Spaso-Eleazar Hermitage (Pskov region) had a vision. On the hill he saw a beautiful city, to which people were trying to get through. But they were disturbed by a huge monster. Elder Gabriel decided to walk along a narrow path fenced with a wall. People who followed this path reached the city safely.
Then Gabriel remembered the akathist to the Most Holy Theotokos, which contains the following words: “Rejoice, indestructible wall of the kingdom...” So the elder understood who was keeping all people on the narrow road to the Kingdom of God. He turned to the Blessed Virgin Mary in prayer and, protected by the wall from any danger, was able to safely enter the city. In it he saw the Mother of God praying at the Throne of the Lord.
Lyrics
Before you start praying, you need to familiarize yourself with the texts of the prayers.
Troparion
“We now diligently approach the Mother of God, sinners and humility, and let us fall, calling in repentance from the depths of our souls: Lady, help us, having had mercy on us, struggling, we are perishing from many sins, do not turn away your slaves, for you are the only hope of the imams.
Like an indestructible wall and an omnipotent cover of the treasures of Thee, Thy servants, the Lady Theotokos, driving away the darkness of sins and sorrows. We also cry out to You: grant world peace and light and salvation to our souls.”
Kontakion
“Chosen from all generations to the Mother of God and the Queen, before Her most pure image, the Indestructible Wall called, we offer thanksgiving praise to You, O Blessed One. But you, who have incomprehensible power and unspeakable love, save us from all troubles and sorrows, and let us call to You: Rejoice, Mother of God, Indestructible Wall, our Intercessor and consolation.”
Greatness
“We magnify You, Most Holy Virgin, God-chosen Youth, and honor Your holy image, through which you bring healing to all who come with faith.”
Prayer
“Oh, our gracious Lady Theotokos, Ever-Virgin, accept from us this song of gratitude and offer up to our Creator and Creator your warm prayers for us unworthy, may He, the Merciful, forgive us all our sins, evil and unclean thoughts, nasty deeds. Oh, Most Holy Lady, have mercy and send down a gift according to each need: heal the sick, comfort the sorrowing, bring the lost to reason, protect the infants, raise and teach the young, encourage and instruct men and wives, support and warm the old, be with us both here and in life eternal Wall, Indestructible, deliver us from all troubles and misfortunes and from eternal torment, and always singing Your Motherly love, we praise with all our hearts Your Son, with His Father and the Holy Spirit, forever and ever. Amen".
Akathist
“A representative angel was sent quickly from God to You, Most Pure One, to bring You worldwide joy, as You conceived God the Word, the Savior of the world, from the Holy Spirit in Your womb. We, leading the fulfillment of this annunciation, believe that the Lord, Most Blessed One, has shown You as an Indestructible Wall and a barrier for us from all sin, troubles and misfortunes. For this sake, let us please Thee, Mother of God, and joyfully cry out:
Rejoice, for the Lord is with You and You with us.
Rejoice, for in Cana of Galilee you appeared as a representative to Your Son for the people.
Rejoice, for with Your omophorion, who broadens the clouds, you cover the faithful.
Rejoice, for with Your grace you wipe away the tears of the suffering.
Rejoice, for You lift up Your hands to protect us from all defilement.
Rejoice, for according to Your word you are now and ever blessed.
Rejoice, Mother of God, Indestructible Wall, our Intercessor and consolation.”
