background

The Icon of the Mother of God

  1. Home
  2. About
  3. Icons of Holiness
  4. The Icon of the Mother of God

The Icon of the Mother of God

“God is wonderful in His Saints” (Psalms 68:35) but even more wonderfully was His glory revealed in “the Most blessed among women,” the one who surpassed in holiness the angelic powers: The Mother of God!

The icons of the Mother of God bring the most special testimonies of God’s love and the faithful’s communion with the saints. Notably, many of these icons are wonder-working and most of the old monasteries are blessed with such precious objects which have enlightened and given hope to many generations of monks and believers over the centuries. Putna Monastery’s wonder-working icon of the Mother of God is one of them. The love pouring out from the icon of the Mother of God, Her presence surrounding us – as if we did not stand in front of an icon but in front of the Holy Mother Herself – is the greatest miracle springing from this icon.

The wonder-working Icon of the Mother of God.
The wonder-working Icon of the Mother of God was covered in silver by Holy Metropolitan Jacob of Putna in 1755.

And a miracle is – as so beautifully and profoundly Mother Benedicta put it – “the love and the humility immersed in prayer.” Nobody has ever been so completely and gloriously enveloped with these three virtues except for the Mother of God. The love of God is expressed so completely in her words of humility: “Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it done to me after thy word.” (Luke 1:38), and her love for people gives rise to her ceaseless prayer for all mankind. This is the icon of the Mother of God described in simple words – that are only fit for our understanding, not hers!

The icon of the Mother of God without its silver cover.
Christian monastics have put themselves under the patronage and protection of the Mother of God from the very beginning because, in the fight to conquer the Kingdom of God, it is through her that the crowning of victories and the rewards of the labors come to those who, after many efforts, have become worthy of saying, like Apostle Paul, that they have fought the good fight, finished the race and kept the faith (2 Timothy 4:7).
Archimandrite Dosoftei Murariu
abbot of Putna Monastery between 1956 and 1957

The Holy Mother of God is the most powerful helper of people, especially of monks, therefore the place of the Holy Mother of God is the most important after God, the most precious and dearest to monks. This explains why the image best depicting a brotherhood is that of the monks gathered around the Icon of the Holy Mother.

Not a single day passes without the monks lifting their eyes to the Mother of God. They ask for her blessing in every work they start, because there are no troubles and problems She could not solve, and none of those who lift their weeping eyes to Her are left unconsoled.

The icon of the Mother of God is the living presence amongst us of the One Who is higher than the heavens.

The Icon of the Mother of God carried in a procession.

The testimonies about the miracles performed by the icon of the Mother of God from Putna have been lost along the monastery’s multi-centennial existence. The icon, called by Bartholomew Mazereanu in 1756 “the holy and wonder-working icon of the Most Holy Mother of God,” existed in the 18th century. Tradition and historical research have forwarded a few suppositions about the date of the painting.

What is certain though is that, for centuries, the Mother of God has been working miracles through this icon for the glory of God and the benefit of the faithful.

All who call to Her with hope shall get an answer, all who ask persistently shall receive. Many miracles did the Mother of God perform through this icon; also, many are those who were found worthy to receive the healing grace overflowing from it. Even more are the anonymous people who went home strengthened by the icon of the Mother of God – giving glory to God and His Mother for the grace they received – and who kept these miracles deep down in their hearts. Here is an example of a Christian woman’s sincere gesture of gratitude: she left in the alms box a note containing some words that are as simple as they are eloquent: “Mother of God, thank you for giving me back my sight!” She signed it simply: Maria.

On the 29th of March, the 4th Sunday of Lent, the Putna monastic community carried in a procession around the monastery precincts the Wonder-Working Icon of the Mother of God, the icons of St. Stephen the Great and St. Jacob of Putna, as well as reliquaries with holy relics.

 
 
 Next section
Holy Voivode Stephen the Great