Our Lady of Žyrovthy

Marian advocation of Žyrovichy (Grodno)

According to the tradition local, history begins to 1470, when some shepherds miraculously found a small icon of the Mother of God in a pear near Žyrovichy. With this apparition are associated accounts of the disappearance and reappearance of the icon and of a bright glow, which prompted the landowners to erect a first church at the site of the find. These elements fall within the scope of Pious Legend, transmitted for centuries in the memory of the monastery and the faithful.

Main data

Origin and history

According to the tradition local, history begins to 1470, when some shepherds miraculously found a small icon of the Mother of God in a pear near Žyrovichy. With this apparition are associated accounts of the disappearance and reappearance of the icon and of a bright glow, which prompted the landowners to erect a first church at the site of the find. These elements fall within the scope of Pious Legend, transmitted for centuries in the memory of the monastery and the faithful.

In the plan of the documented history, the monastery of Žyrovichy appears as one of the oldest spiritual centers of Belarus, with origins in the 15th century and stable monastic development since the 16th century. It was founded as a monastery of Byzantine rite in a territory then belonging to the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and throughout history it went through periods uniatas / grec-Catholics y Orthodox, reflecting the tensions and exchanges between Rome and Constantinople in the region. The current Male Monastery of the Holy Sleeping of Žyrovichy it has not been closed since its foundation in 1520, surviving wars, border changes and political regimes.

The image and the sanctuary

La image of Our Lady of Žyrovichy is a very small icon, carved in stone (jaspe). It's shaped. ovalada, mid approximately 5,6 x 4,4 cm and presents the Mother of God with the Child Jesus in arms. It is considered one of the most venerated Marian icons in the country, one of the oldest orthodox shrines in Belarus and one of the 100 most appreciated Orthodox icons in the world. The small and fragility of the stone make the icon He rarely leaves the monastery.And the monks avoid moving it to preserve it.

The sanctuary in which it is venerated is the Monastery of the Holy Sleeping of Žyrovichy (also called Monastery of the Holy Asunción / Holy Sleep Monastery), located in Žyrovichy, Grodno region. The monastic complex, which is today the largest Orthodox church complex in Belarus, includes several temples and buildings. The image is kept in the Holy Assumption Cathedral, built around 1650 in Baroque style with classicist elements. The monastery is an important theological center of the Belarusian Orthodox Church (headquarters of the theological institute of Minsk) and is considered a "national treasure" for its history, sacred art and spiritual relevance.

It is not known, in the sources consulted, that the temple has the title of minor basilica or officially declared National sanctuary in the legal-Catholic canonical sense; it is described, rather, as the Main Orthodox Spiritual Center of the country.

Sponsorship and coronation

Our Lady of Žyrovichy is venerated as gran patrona espiritual de Bielorrusiaespecially among the faithful of Byzantine rite (Orthodox and Greek-Catholic). Devotion transcends the town of Žyrovichy and extends throughout the region of Grodno and the country, considering the image as one of the nation's most significant religious symbols.

On the coronationthe local historical sources indicate that the icon of the Mother of God of Žyrovichy was crowned in 1730. Given the confessional context of the period (period of strong uniata / Greek-Catholic presence), it is likely that it was a coronation in the Eastern Catholic environment; however, in the sources consulted it is not clearly specified the name of the Pontiff or of the Pontifical Delegate responsible for that coronation. Therefore, in a strictly technical sense, does not contain a documented canonical coronation with the details required today by the laws of the Latin Church.

Party and devotion

La main party linked to this vocation is the "day of the apparition of the Icon of the Mother of God of Žyrovichy", celebrado el 20 May. Every year, on that date, they go to the monastery numerous pilgrims from all Belarus and from neighbouring countries for solemn liturgical celebrations, processions and prayers in honor of the Mother of God. This is one of the main religious events of the Belarusian Orthodox calendar.

The devotion is distinguished by the trust in the intercession of the Mother of God for health, well-being and spiritual strength. Over the centuries, testimonies of graces and cures attributed to the intercession of Our Lady of Žyrovichy have been accumulated, which has consolidated her fame as an icon "miraculous" or "taumaturgo." The flow of pilgrims is constant throughout the year, but is especially intensified around the May feast and in great Marian solemnities, when the monastery becomes a place of confession, liturgy and uninterrupted prayer.

Link to the Rosary

In tradition orthodox y Greek-Catholic of Belarus, devotion to the Mother of God is expressed above all through the Byzantine Lithorgic, los akathistos and the prayers of the icons, rather than by the prayer of the Rosary in its Latin form. In the sources consulted does not contain a specific or historical relationship of the icon of Our Lady of Žyrovichy with the prayer of the Rosary as a distinctive practice of the sanctuary.

However, from a broader Marian perspective, the Rosary It offers the Latin Rite faithful a privileged way to spiritually join the Mother of God venerated in Žyrovichy. The contemplation of mysteries of Christ's life with Mary It is well aligned with the spirituality of the icon: Mary who presents the Son, guides the faithful to Him and accompanies the suffering and hopes of the people. In this way, although the Rosary is not the traditional form of piety in the monastery, it can function as a prayer bridge that allows Catholic devotees to incorporate this ancient and venerable advocation of Belarus into their daily prayer life, in communion with the Churches of Byzantine tradition that guard the icon.