The Catalog of Good Deeds

Petrovskaya icon of the Mother of God from the workshops of St.Elisabeth Convent

The story of the icon

The name of the Petrovskaya icon of the Mother of God derives from her creator and icon painter – Saint Petr, Metropolitan of Moscow. He painted the icon in approximately 1306 when he was still the Father Superior in the city of Volyn. The icon was presented to Metropolitan Maxim, who in turn brought the icon to the city of Vladimir, adorned it with precious stones and gold, and piously kept the icon in his quarters, praying for his flock.

Upon the death of Metropolitan Maxim, a certain Father Superior by the name of Geronty, wishing to be elevated to the dignity of Metropolitan, took hierarchal vestments and the icon and went to Constantinople to get the position. There were however, quite a few Russians, including Prince Yuri of Galicia, who objected to having Geronty as a metropolitan. Prince Yuri persuaded Father Superior Petr to go to Constantinople to be elevated to the high rank. Petr obeyed the Prince’s wish and having arrived in Constantinople ahead of Geronty. Patriarch Afanasy received him well and consecrated him to the rank of metropolitan of all of Rus.

In the meantime, Geronty’s journey did not fare well. Powerful storms, heavy winds, large waves all kept Geronty’s ship from arriving to Constantinople. During the night of the storm, the Mother of God appeared to him, with her appearance being the same as on the icon painted by St. Petr and told him that he was wasting his time traveling such long distances. She told him that it was not meant for him to be the metropolitan of Rus. She says that the one who painted her image, Petr, the loyal servant of Christ would take up that position. Having awoken from the dream, Geronty, hurried in fear to tell the rest of his crew about the vision and that their attempts were futile and that he would not be granted the rank he desired.

The ship by which Geronty was traveling finally arrived to Constantinople with great difficulty. Geronty was forced to tell Patriarch Afanasy his dream. The patriarch then proceeded to confiscate the hierarchal robes and the icon of the Mother of God and gave it back to its rightful owner, Metropolitan Petr. He then told him: “Take this sacred and holy image of Theotokos, which was painted by your own hands, because of this the Mother of God gave you such a gift, foretelling about you.”

In 1325, the diocese of the metropolitan was moved from the city of Vladimir to Moscow. At the same time Metropolitan Petr transferred the icon to the altar of the Dormition Cathedral in Moscow, where the icon remained until the Russian revolution. The only time the icon would be removed from its place is during large processions when it would be brought our along the another sacred and holy icon – the Icon of the Mother of God of Vladimir.

Petrovskaya icon of the Mother of God was always highly venerated among the faithful Orthodox Christians in Russia and was considered to be a miracle working icon from ancient times. Grand Duke Ivan III(Ivan the Great) prayed in front of the icon. At the end of the 16^th Century Patriarch Iov took the icon with him in order to persuade Boris Godunov to be crowned czar. Finally in 1613, the icon was taken to Kostroma to call upon Mikhail Feodorovich Romanov to accede to the Russian throne.

Sometime between the end of the 19^th and beginning of the 20^th century the icon disappears from the cathedral. A small icon remains in the Cathedral which is also dated around 14-15 century, and some assume that it is the true Petrovskaya icon. The feast day of the icon is on September 6^th (August 24) and is celebrated on the same day as the translation of the relics of St. Petr, when his relics were transferred to a newly build Dormition Church in 1479.

The Iconography

The icon of the Mother of God “Petrovskaya” is similar to the most popular icon among the Russian people – The Tenderness Icon of the Mother of God. The iconography of the icon is similar to the Mother of God of Vladimir.The Mother of God and Infant Christ are depicted on this icon in a unique way. They are both painted from the chest up.

There are certain peculiarities in the gestures of the Mother of God and the Savior. The depiction of the Mother of God embracing the Son is quite rare for the iconography of the Holy Theotokos. The “Petrovskaya” shows that the Mother of God is embracing Christ with her left hand and pointing at Him with the right one, as He is “the True Way and Life”. At the same time, Her right hand lies on the Christ’s chest, which symbolizes parental caressing. This 14-century icon from the Novgorod style of icon painting, on red background underlines this gesture in an even more specific way – the Mother of God embraces Christ’s neck with Her arm.

In return the hands of the Savior are responding – the Son is nestling with His face to the Mother’s face, just like on the Mother of God of Vladimir. There is a scroll in His left hand, and with the right hand the Infant can be seen with a blessing sign which is quite rare for such ancient icons. At the same time Christ’s right hand is lying on the Mother’s chest. The unique icon from the city of Kirillov shows the warmth of love between the Mother of God and Christ: where the Son is touching the Mother’s face with His blessing arm.

Copies of the icon

In the city of Kaluga there is a copy of the Mother of God “Petrovskaya”, which is well known to be a miracle working icon.

The 16th century copy is now kept in the museum in the city of Kirillov.

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Archimandrite Seraphim was born with the name of Roman in 1901 in a large peasant family. Despite the lack of money, the future archimandrite managed to get a quite decent education. When he was 21 he went to the Monastery of Zhyrovichy, where within a year, on April 1, 1923, he was tonsured as a monk and took his new name – Seraphim. In three more years he became a hierodeacon. In 1939 he became father superior of the monastery.

The defining moment for the future life of archimandrite Seraphim came in 1941. He and his friend Georgy Kudarenko were honored to perform a vital mission on the territory of occupied Belarus – to restore and reopen the churches which have been closed before the beginning of the second world war.

The missionaries interceded that the churches should be opened, they served the divine services, baptized children and performed funeral services. More importanlty they contimued to preach during the course of the their mission

Wherever Father Seraphim was, he gathered information about persecutions against the Orthodox Church in Belarus. According to his reports, there were no functioning churches in East Belarus (except from one in the city of Orsha), the clergy was exiled and a lot of priests were murdered. The churches were turned into theatres and clubs. Once, when the church was reopened in Vitebsk, people were so happy that began to cry, which nearly prevented the priests from serving.

The Divine Miracle

During such an important and difficult mission, the missionaries faced dangerous problems many times, but the Lord helped His servants and never left them. When Father Seraphim visited his native village on his way to Grodno, he told a story which happened to him. Once, he was suffering from a disease and his condition was getting worse each day, untill finally the illness became life threatening. Father Seraphim could not even climb on his bed without a low chair, and he hurt every time he tried to move. At one point when he was in bed, the Soviet aviation began to attack the city. Father Georgy was going to hide in the basement, but he did not want to leave his sick friend, who could not go down with him. So the priest decided to stay with his friend.

Suddenly Father Seraphim heard the voice ordering him to leave the room. The archimandrite stood up with great difficulty and went to the kitchen room. Then the voice ordered to call Father Georgy as well. When he entered the kitchen, the bomb hit their house. At that moment something mysterious happened. The shard of the bomb hit Saint Seraphim and opened the apostasies without causing harm to any organ. The gleet flew out from that wound, and soon Father Seraphim recovered completely. Thus the operation happened without human interference. God cured His servant himself.

When Father Seraphim and Father Gregory returned to Minsk, they continued to serve in the Holy Spirit Church, which they themselves had opened. Here, they also founded a monastery, which got its spiritual literature from the historical museum. Father Seraphim also visited hospitals, home for the disabled, and orphanages. The good shepherd was carrying the light of Gospel and God’s love everywhere.

Preaching at the cost of life

In 1944 the missionaries came to Grodno, where they visit hospitals and talk to the wounded people. On Spetember 6th they were both arrested. After five days of interrogation they were transported to a jail in Minsk. The prisoners continued to be brave during the interrogations. Father Seraphim did not conceal his views and replied to all the questions : “The Holy Rus’ was orthodox, our ancestors believed in God, and now we all can also reach happiness through our faith. We cannot let the godless to close our churches. And it is tragic that your fathers died without having communion and were buried without without a funeral service. It is no good, that your children lived without being baptised or married in church…”

The convicts were tortured severely, but their spirit remained strong regardless. There is a copy of the interrogation of Father Seraphim dated to December, 5, 1994:

Q: Now you may tell everything about your work on German secret service.

A: I have never been an agent of German secret service.

Q: Your evidence is false. You are concealing all the time that you were a German agent.

A: My evidence is true. I have never been a German agent.

Q: I offer you another opportunity to tell everything about your cooperation with German agents.

A: I have already told everything I can say on this account. I have no other evidence.

According to the protocol the interrogation begun at 1 p.m. and ended at 4:15 p.m. It lasted more those 3 hours but only those words were written. We can only guess what was happening during the interrogation…

The prisoners were on trial for 10 months. Finally they were sentenced to imprisonment for 5 years in a special concentration camp. A year after the conviction Archimandrite Saraphim passed away inside the camp. The official cause of death was cardiac failure, but the circumstances of death are still being investigated.

The feast of Saint Martyr Seraphim of Zhyrovichy is celebrated on September, 6 – on the day of the arrest which became the beginning of his path to martydom.

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This is the death for our old man. I have to speak about repentance but what I say is beyond my own measure. This is why I have to trample my own dead self in order to be able to say something. Is it easy? No, it is not, and this is always a miracle. Each time when I come to talk with people, I feel I am about to die; and I am serious because I do not have anything to share, not even a thought, and sometimes I desperately need to sleep but I have to go and talk. After so many years, I have developed a habit of overcoming myself: I do not care what I want, I simply go and do what I am supposed to do.

Now I lay my hopes on fasting, not on medicines but on fasting. I would like to fast more seriously even from the external point of view but I am not sure if I am able to do it. I have a habit not to eat anything on some days, and this makes my task easier.

We should remember God as often as it is possible during the Great Lent. Personally, I am now in the state of not being capable of anything and not being able to understand anything. Now I see that nobody listens, that each person has his own opinion and only a miracle can change that opinion. I am afraid to say something to the sisters. Each time you say something to another person, you are in for a counterattack, and these counterattacks may turn out to be very painful, that is why I spare myself and think, “Let it be, OK, everything's fine.” They tell me something, and I answer, “Yes, that's fine. Do you prefer it this way? Okay, let us do it the way you prefer. Do you have any preferences?” Sometimes people do not want anything. Let us wait to see what happens. However, I can see that God still acts. This surprises and even inspires me. God does act even though you have long been defeated and you understand that you are good for nothing. I have not had such a feeling before but now I see that I have neither willpower, nor willingness, but I continue to live on and to speak with you.

I recall the words of Father Nicholas Gurianov, which are very important for me. These words help me. He said, “People think that I am OK, and I have to keep to myself what I really feel.” In fact, when you convince yourself that everything is fine and do not retreat into your own shell, this may be a good choice. For example, I was in a dead-end for many years: although I spent days and nights in church, when I came back home I saw that I could not control myself and there was darkness around me, I thought I was to die together with all people around me. I felt that darkness for years – and this is wrong. This is why nowadays I take a completely different attitude to myself and seek for the proper attitude towards God and my neighbours because God's power is made manifest in our infirmities. We must not run away and say, “God, I don't need you anymore.” I need God. Even if it is a consumerist attitude, even if I need God to lift me up and to put me to my senses. God needs lazy people, God needs foolish people, God needs even the most thick-headed people. God needs all of us, and He loves each one of us, which is surprising, and He does not take offence at us, this is for sure. Therefore, the Forgiveness Sunday is not an easy day: one has to overcome himself.

Archpriest Andrew Lemeshonok

(From the sisterhood meetings)

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Usually, we do not realize why our life takes this or that direction. We do not see God’s Providence. Later, if we look back and analyses the past years, we see that nothing happened by chance.

I recall the time when I started going to church and had taken communion just a couple of times. I was sitting in Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral, waiting for my turn to come to Father Andrew to confess. There was an old icon worn from time on a column in front of me. I was in my first year of a school of arts and was still craving to create something. My proud mind perceived icon painting (like all church life in general) as something lacking creativity, limited with various dogmas, very dull and intimidating the artist’s personality. These thoughts ran through my head when I was looking at the icon. Suddenly, a miracle happened. I can not clearly recollect what I felt exactly at that moment because more than fourteen years have passed since that time. I can simply say that I felt the grace that shone from that icon. This was a new, delightful and unearthly feeling. I was so deeply moved by it that I thought I would become an icon painter one day.

However, at the same time it was painful for me to renounce my self, my creative individualism. It was like I had to hide my talent in the earth. I thought I was doing a great favor by my decision to paint icons. It was not until later that I realized that painting icons is a great honor. I felt that I should be grateful to God because He allowed me to serve Him in this way.

One more detail: later, when I realized the mercy of God that had poured on me through the icon, I tried to learn more about that icon. I came to the church and looked at it once again. It was a pity that the inscription on the icon was illegible, and only later could I understand that it was Archangel Gabriel. My Heavenly patroness Larissa is commemorated exactly on the same day that the Synaxis of Archangel Gabriel is celebrated.

Matushka Larissa (Nezhbort)

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The story and iconography of the Petrovskaya icon of the Mother of God

Saint Seraphim of Zhyrovichy: An Example of a True Orthodox Christian

What does it take to forgive?

The Catalog of Good Thoughts for August

Letters of St.Basil The Great: Do you worship what you know or what you do not know?

Personal Stories: There’s Nothing in Life that Happens by Chance…

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Search This Blog

featured Slider

The story and iconography of the Petrovskaya icon of the Mother of God

Saint Seraphim of Zhyrovichy: An Example of a True Orthodox Christian

What does it take to forgive?

The Catalog of Good Thoughts for August

Letters of St.Basil The Great: Do you worship what you know or what you do not know?

Personal Stories: There’s Nothing in Life that Happens by Chance…

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