Chiliandari icon of Mother of God "Of the Akathistos"

 

This is one of the most popular icons from the Holy Mount Athos. The exact time of its appearance in Russia is unknown. It may be assumed that the copy was brought from Greece to Russia not earlier than the first half of the 19th century. The particular veneration of this icon is connected with a miracle which occurred at the Chiliandari Monastery on Mount Athos. In 1837, the iconostasis in the cloister's church of which an icon of the Mother of God was part caught fire through carelessness of a cleric (ecclesiarch). Although the iconostasis burned to ashes, the holy image survived. After its miraculous saving the Akathistos to the Mother of God was read before it, which is why it came to be known as the Icon of the Mother of God "Of the Akathistos." The brethren of the Chiliandari Monastery gave it a second name, "Quick to Hearken." The icon was famous both in Greece and in Russia for numerous miracles and cures. Feast day: January 12/25.