The entire life of Orthodox Christians passes under the gracious Protection of the Most Holy Theotokos. IN church calendar There are several holidays that are dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary. September 13 is one of such days, it marks the Position of the Venerable Belt of the Blessed Virgin Mary. 
According to legend, Saint Mary herself wove a belt from camel hair. According to one version, the Most Holy Theotokos, after Her Dormition, appeared to the Apostle Thomas and gave him the belt. As is known from the scriptures, the apostle did not make it in time for the burial of the Mother of God; at that time he was far away in India. To console the faithful disciple of Christ, She, through his prayers, handed over the shrine into his hands.
In the first centuries, the Belt was in Jerusalem, and several centuries later, under Emperor Arcadius (395-408), it was transported to Constantinople and solemnly placed in the Chalcopratian Church, all-night vigils and prayer services on Wednesdays were established there. The only shrine remaining from the earthly life of the Mother of God was placed in an ark and sealed with the golden seal of Emperor Arcadius, indicating the year and exact day of this great event.
The Belt lay sealed in a closed casket for several centuries, until He helped the wife of Emperor Leo the Wise (886-911), Zoya, who had been suffering from an illness for a long time (perhaps it was an obsession). Doctors could not cure her illness with medical remedies.
Zoya, according to a vision, was told that her illness would recede if the Holy Belt of the Virgin Mary was placed on her. Having learned about this, the patriarch, at the request of the emperor, removed the seal, opened the shrine containing the shrine, and everyone saw that it had not been damaged at all for so many centuries.
With the blessing of the patriarch, the Belt was placed on the sick woman, and the empress was immediately healed of her illness. With gratitude to the Lord and the Mother of God, a prayer service was served, and the healed queen embroidered the Belt that saved her with threads of gold. The shrine was put back into the casket and sealed again.
Thus, the second position of the belt happened. In memory of the miracle that occurred and in honor of the double position, the Feast of the Position of the Honorable Belt of the Blessed Virgin Mary was established.
In the tenth century, the Belt of the Virgin Mary was divided into several particles. Time passed, and three parts of the belt of the Mother of God were discovered in Bulgaria, Georgia (Zugdidi) and Cyprus (Trooditissa Monastery).
At the beginning of the nineteenth century, Georgia was accepted into the Russian Empire and, in gratitude to this event, the Georgian Queen Nino presented the shrine to Emperor Alexander I. When the relic arrived from Georgia, the king decorated the casket precious stones and gave it back to the queen with instructions that she build a church in Zugdidi, which would be the place where the belt would be kept. The command was fulfilled, and to this day the shrine remains in this place.
The Mother of God, through Her Belt, showed the world a great many miracles; through Him, thousands of people and even entire nations were healed.
Some of the miracles that the Mother of God showed through the Belt:
1871
An unusually severe outbreak of cholera occurred in Constantinople, which literally wiped out its inhabitants. When the Belt was brought to the infected city, almost immediately after the arrival of the shrine, the epidemic receded. And people already infected with it were cured. At the same time, a case became known when the placing of the Belt of the Virgin Mary on a young man who had just died from a serious illness helped to resurrect him from the dead.
1894
Getting rid of locusts that devoured crops in the city of Madita (Asia Minor). As soon as the ship with the shrine moored to the shore, the sky darkened with insects, which immediately began to fall into the water. Residents were saved from imminent famine.
1915
There was also a saving of crops in the Greek provinces from a locust invasion. This time flocks of birds arrived and began to eat the pests.
1957
Elders arrived from the island, which is located near Athos, to the Vatopedi monastery and asked the monks to save them from a terrible drought. A religious procession set out from the monastery with the holy Belt. As soon as the shrine appeared on the island, a heavy downpour began.
In the Vatopedi Monastery, copies of the Belt are sewn and blessed, which women suffering from infertility wear on their wombs. Probably, the Mother of God hears fervent requests, so God’s grace, with the help of real faith and sincere prayers, descends through the shrine on childless spouses. The monastery houses a huge number of letters from happy people thanking God for the birth of a child.
In 2011, Archimandrite Ephraim, abbot of the Vatopedi monastery, brought an ark with a piece of the Belt of the Virgin Mary to our country. The shrine was put up for veneration in Moscow in the Cathedral of Christ the Savior, and immediately, from all over the country, pilgrims began to come for veneration. Regardless of cold weather, a huge line of people formed to worship at the Belt. Later, the ark visited some other Russian cities. During all this time, about three million were able to venerate the Holy Belt, which the Most Pure Virgin Mary held with Her hands. She blessed and helped a great many people, all who turned to Her with faith and hope for help and salvation.
You can venerate particles of the Belt of the Virgin Mary in Russia in the Moscow Church of Elijah the Prophet (2nd Obydensky Lane, 6), in the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, in the Kazan Cathedral in St. Petersburg.
On September 13, Orthodox Christians celebrate the position of the honorable Belt of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The story of the discovery, travel and miracles of this shrine is breathtaking.
Consolation of the Apostle Thomas
As you know, the Apostle Thomas did not participate in the burial of the Virgin Mary - at that time he was in the Indian region and spread the Good News there. Only on the third day did he arrive in Jerusalem. Grieving and wanting to say goodbye to the Mother of God, he asked the apostles to open her tomb. Having opened it, the apostles were amazed, because the tomb turned out to be empty. Only the funeral shrouds remained in it, from which a wonderful fragrance emanated. “Kissing the funeral shroud remaining in the tomb with tears and reverence, they prayed to the Lord to reveal to them where the body of the Most Holy Theotokos had disappeared?” - writes Dmitry Rostovsky. In response to their question, the Mother of God appeared to the apostles at supper and greeted them with the words: “Rejoice! “For I am with you always.”
However, there is a legend that on the third day, that is, before this appearance, the Mother of God appeared to the Apostle Thomas through his prayer. To console him, she threw her belt to him from the sky. This tradition is depicted on Orthodox icons, and on the holy Mount Athos there is a 6th-century fresco depicting Thomas bringing the belt to the other disciples.
Empress Zoe and the Evil Spirit
The Golden Ark, in which the belt, revered as a great shrine, was enclosed for a long time, was first discovered at the end of the 9th - beginning of the 10th century during the reign of Emperor Leo the Wise. This was done with the permission of the patriarch for the emperor’s wife Zoe, who was overwhelmed by an unclean spirit. The emperor prayed to God for the healing of his wife. And a vision occurred that she would be cured of her weakness if the belt of the Virgin Mary was placed on her. When the ark was opened, it turned out that the belt, which had lain in it for almost ten centuries, had not decayed. The Patriarch applied the Belt to the sick empress, and she immediately got rid of the unclean spirit. As a token of gratitude to the Mother of God, Zoya embroidered the entire Belt with gold thread. After these events, Saint Euthymius, the emperor’s confessor and Patriarch of Constantinople, composed a Homily “in honor of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary, in remembrance of the miracle that occurred from Her Honorable Belt, by grace, mercy and love for mankind, Christ our God was born from Her.”
Belt division
In the 10th century, the Belt of the Virgin Mary was divided into parts, which eventually ended up in Bulgaria, Georgia (Zugdidi) and Cyprus (Trooditissa Monastery).
Helena, the niece of the Byzantine Emperor Romanos III Argir (Argyropoulo), received healing from the belt of the Virgin Mary. When in 1028, after the war with Georgia, the emperor made peace with her, he married Helen to the Georgian king Bagrat IV Kuropalates in order to seal the political alliance. With the permission of the emperor, the bride brought part of the Belt with her to a distant country. It is known that at the beginning of the 19th century, the ruler of Megrelia Nino, the daughter of the Georgian king George XII, after accepting Russian citizenship, sent the shrine as a gift to the Russian Emperor Alexander I. The reaction of the Russian Tsar is amazing. Having decorated the ark with precious stones, he sent it back and ordered to build a stone church in Zugdidi to store the shrine. And to this day this part of the Belt is kept in the Cathedral of the Blachernae Icon of the Mother of God in a precious icon case.
Vatopedi Monastery
The Vatopedi Monastery on Mount Athos in Greece contains a part of the belt of the Blessed Virgin Mary, which the Byzantine emperors took with them on military campaigns and which the Bulgarians once recaptured from the Byzantines. This is a gift from the Serbian prince Lazar Hrebelianovich, who ruled in the 14th century - the last independent ruler of Serbia. This prince is glorified among the saints of the Serbian Orthodox Church as a great martyr.
The history of the monastery is so closely intertwined with the history of the Belt that it can no longer be thought of separately from it. This is evidenced by the nickname “Agiazonites” (that is, “holy belts”), given to the Vatopedi monks on Athos.
Temple of the Belt of the Virgin Mary in Syria
In the city of Homs (ancient Emesa) there is a temple dedicated to the Belt of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the famous “Umm Zunnar”. According to the tradition of these places, the shrine was placed in a silver flower on a stand. In the center of the plant, surrounded by openwork petals under glass, lies a thin woolen belt made of camel hair and gold threads, about 60 centimeters long, twisted into a ring. According to legend, this is part of the belt of the Virgin Mary. It was found in 1953 after an ancient manuscript in Aramaic was discovered in a monastery in Mardin (modern Turkey). This manuscript indicated the place where half of the belt was kept, which Thomas took with him. Numerous healings also occur from this part of the shrine through the prayers of believers. In Umm Zunnar, next to a niche decorated with fresh flowers, where the Belt of the Virgin Mary is kept, there is a jug. Believers throw notes into it addressed to the Heavenly Intercessor.
Lots of belts
Orthodox believe that the list with miraculous icon as holy as the original, that a stone from a holy place, brought home, can work a miracle according to the faith of the pilgrim. Likewise, the small belts made by the monks of the Vatopedi Monastery and consecrated on the belt of the Most Holy Theotokos have the same power as the belt itself - the power of faith of the person praying. People pass these belts on to each other, divide them into parts, and send them to different countries. Many write about healings not only from the “original”, but also through these simple belts and their parts sent to them. It is believed that in a pilgrimage the path is important, in the queue to the shrine - prayer (pre)standing in this queue - that is, preparation, prayer and meeting with the shrine are one thing.
Divine measure and miracle of healing
The Belt of the Blessed Virgin Mary is not only a relic and a shrine, but also a standard, a divine measure that was used in the construction of cathedrals. For example, the proportions of the Annunciation Cathedral of the Diveyevo Monastery are determined by the belt of the Most Holy Theotokos, the length of which is 1 meter 20 cm, and are twenty belts wide (24 m), thirty long (36 m), fifty high (60 m). Twenty, thirty and fifty, added together, are equal to one hundred, that is, the monastic centenary, which is performed using the rosary. The belt became a measure for the construction of a number of Theotokos churches in Rus', including the Assumption Church in Rostov and the Assumption Church in Suzdal.
Many testimonies of miraculous healings from the belt of the Virgin Mary have been known since ancient times. Miracles continue in our time. Through the prayers of people, their troubles are resolved various kinds. But most of the evidence related to the belt comes from people who suffered from infertility and were cured (the flow of letters with photographs of newborns does not dry up at the Vatopedi Monastery) and from those who were healed from serious illnesses, including cancer.
In Russia, parts of the belt of the Virgin Mary are kept in the Serapion Chambers of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, in the Kazan Cathedral in St. Petersburg and in the Church of Elijah the Prophet in Obydensky Lane in Moscow, where you can venerate them at any time.
On the day of the celebration of the Position of the Belt of the Blessed Virgin Mary, September 13, there is a special celebration in the Conception Monastery. A festive Liturgy and religious procession through the monastery take place. In the monastery, this holiday is especially revered, because in the monastery there is an embroidered belt, consecrated on the ark with the Belt of the Most Holy Theotokos in the Holy Vatopedi monastery.
Many pilgrims awaiting favors Holy Lady of our Mother of God, they flock to the monastery to pray, among other shrines, at the Belt of the Blessed Virgin. Among the pilgrims there are especially many married couples who suffer from childlessness. They offer prayers before the miraculous image of the Mother of God “Merciful”, the revered ancient image of the Conception of St. Righteous Anna, and reverently venerate the reliquary with the Belt of the Most Holy Theotokos. For the blessing in the cathedral of the Conception Monastery, they are given a belt, consecrated in the Vatopedi monastery on the ark with the Belt of the Blessed Virgin Mary. These belts regularly arrive at the Conception Monastery from Athos. If childless parents cannot come to Moscow, to the Conception Mill, they write a request for prayer and they are sent a belt by mail. Many of those who pray with faith and zeal, try to change their lives, by faith receive what they ask for and become happy parents. We introduce you to the miracles that occurred in the Conception Monastery through the prayers of people to the Most Holy Theotokos in the hope of the miraculous power of Her Honorable Belt.
Miracles of the Belt of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Ekaterina (Karelia):
"Hello! Miracle! I am pregnant! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" (letter January 20, 2015, belt sent in August 2014)
Elena:
“I received the belt, and exactly two weeks later we found out that we were expecting a baby! We had a beautiful daughter in December!” (letter dated March 19, 2015, belt sent in March 2014)
Lyudmila (Moscow):
“I didn’t believe that miracles could happen. I hoped that at least with medical care everything will work out. But the miracle that happened turned my life upside down” (letter May 6, 2015, received the belt in the cathedral at the end of February 2015)
Olga (Voronezh):
Nina (Kazan):
“Hello, dear sisters! Thank you for your prayers. Exactly six months after praying for the gift of a child, I became pregnant. The pregnancy was difficult, but with God's help it ended successfully. We have a daughter."
Olga (Belarus, Grodno region):
Olga (Barnaul):
“It’s been almost a year since I received an expensive gift from you, the consecrated belt of the Most Holy Theotokos. Dear sisters, that same month I became pregnant, and on April 24 of this year my son Leonid was born. I want to sincerely thank you for your kindness and prayers. I wore the belt without taking it off throughout my pregnancy and prayed to Mother Queen of Heaven for intercession. Thank you for praying for me. I will always be grateful to you and will pray for you” (letter dated May 26, 2015).
Ekaterina (Nizhny Novgorod):
“I am very grateful to you for the consecrated belt, I wear it without taking it off, I ask God and the Mother of God to give us a child. My husband and I went to Diveevo and started fasting. Two months later I found out that I was pregnant! Thanks a lot! I believe that everything will be fine!” (letter dated July 28, 2015)
Roman (Samara):
“We received the belt today, thank you very much! After we wrote a letter asking to send a belt, after a while a miracle happened: my wife finally became pregnant. We believe that the Queen of Heaven will help us give birth to a healthy baby. Thank you for helping people. God bless you!" (letter dated June 14, 2015, belt sent in May 2015)
Olga (Ryazan):
“Hello, dear sisters! I am writing to you with great gratitude for the belt of the Virgin Mary! My husband and I succeeded. I got pregnant, I wear the belt almost without taking it off! Thank you very much, this is such happiness!” (letter dated June 11, 2015, belt sent in September 2014)
Lyudmila (Sevastopol):
“Hello to you!<…>. And I hasten to tell you the good news: I’m pregnant, we’re expecting a baby! Thank you for your help and blessings, prayers and faith! Now I will wear a belt, maybe there will be less toxicosis. With gratitude and love, Evgeniy and Lyudmila! We hope that with the baby we will be able to visit the Conception Monastery in person.” (letter dated June 9, 2015, belt sent in May 2015).
Elena (Krasnodar region, asked for a belt for a friend):
“Dear sisters! I hasten to express my gratitude to you! Today I received the belt of the Virgin Mary! Thanks a lot! But even more joyful news came a week ago: my friend found out that she was expecting a baby! Without IVF, without any interventions! God sent them a miracle! I still don't believe this luck! Thank you for your prayers and all you do!” (letter dated June 10, 2015)
Daria (St. Petersburg):
“Thank you very much for the belt! I received a letter from him at the beginning of June and already at the end of June I found out that I was pregnant! This is just a miracle! I wear a belt and pray<…>. Thank you for your quick response and help!” (letter dated July 8, 2015, belt sent in June 2015)
Anastasia (Petrozavodsk):
“Thank you for the belt, I received it today.<…>Thanks to your prayers, God helped us conceive. I am pregnant!" (letter dated August 7, 2015, belt sent in July 2015)
Lyudmila (Saratov):
“Dear sisters! Thank you so much for your help, we will finally have our third baby at the beginning of September!” (letter dated August 26, 2015, the belt was sent in July 2014 after receiving the letter: “Dear sisters! My husband and I have two children: they are sixteen and eight years old, but we really want a third baby. After the illnesses and treatments I have suffered, it is not possible get pregnant. I really believe in the power of the belt, please help!”)
Elena (Amur region):
"Hello! I'm due to give birth in just a few days. Please pray for the safe birth of God's servant Elena. The most important thing is that everything is fine with the child, so that a healthy baby is born. Thank you!" (letter dated August 26, 2015, belt sent in July 2014)
Olga (Orenburg)
By the grace of the Lord, through the intercession of the Mother of God, our son was born on November 15, 2017, Maxim. Thank you for your prayers!
Olga (Cheboksary)
With your help and thanks to your prayers, we (Sergey and Olga) became the parents of a beautiful daughter in August.
I will be grateful all my life for this miracle. Thanks a lot.
Maria (Nizhny Novgorod)
I want to thank you for the belt, I wear it without taking it off and for the prayer service, after two years of waiting, treatment, unsuccessful attempts, faith in a miracle, we are finally expecting a baby!!!
Thank God for everything!
Olga (Minsk)
In 2017 you sent me a belt. My husband and I couldn’t get pregnant for a long time. Several IVF attempts were not successful. In June 2018, they decided to make one more attempt. And all this time your belt was on me. With God's help, we are already 2 weeks old today. I want to thank you and bow deeply to you for the belt and prayers.
Natalia (Penza region)
I wanted to express my gratitude to you for sending my husband and I the belts of the Most Holy Theotokos. Thank you very much. I know that the Mother of God helped us, and I was able to get pregnant.
Yulia (Moscow region)
I want to thank you so much! April 21, 2019 on the Day of Light Palm Sunday I received a belt and, almost a month later, I found out about pregnancy! Lord, thank you! Since I have problems with pregnancy, I ask you to pray for God’s servant Julia, so that I can carry and give birth to my child safely, alive and healthy, on time! Once again, thank you very much from the bottom of my heart and bow!
Anastasia (Moscow)
I hasten to bring you my gratitude for the consecrated belt of the Mother of God! He helped me! After 2 months of wearing it, I found out that I would soon become a mother. This was my deepest dream, it can’t be called anything other than a miracle! I am endlessly grateful to the Conception Monastery for the response, for the sacred belt. I pray that the pregnancy goes well and a healthy baby is born. Thank you very much!!!
Oksana (Krasnoyarsk region)
Hello, I received the belt of the Blessed Virgin Mary! Thank you very, very much! You sent me a notification on May 25 that the belt was on its way to me.
And on May 31, I found out that I was pregnant. Today is 05.06. I tied it around my tummy so that our baby would hold tightly to his mother and be born healthy on time!
Thank you so much for making us women happy!!!
Elena (Nizhny Novgorod)
In 2016, I turned to you for help. I couldn't get pregnant for a long time.
You sent me the belt of the Mother of God, since then I wore it without taking it off, and really believed that it would help me. And then a miracle happened, pregnancy occurred thanks to faith in God and doctors. Our baby Macarius was born on September 13, 2018, the day when Orthodox Church and Christian believers celebrated the Position of the Honorable Belt of the Blessed Virgin Mary. I would like to express my deep gratitude to you for the help you provided to us.
Olga (Volgograd)
I have already asked you to send me a belt of the Virgin Mary to help me conceive a child. With God's help we succeeded.
Natalia (Republic of Belarus)
I asked you for a belt before, I couldn’t get pregnant for a long time! You sent it to me, and everything worked out, God gave me happiness!!!
Elena (Saratov)
Thank you very much for sending me a belt last year, it helped me. On July 19 I gave birth to a son.
Larisa (Orenburg region)
The long-awaited pregnancy has arrived. God bless!
Usually I write about icons and shrines that help with infertility, which are constantly in Russia, but now this is an extraordinary case. One of the holiest Christian relics - the belt of the Virgin Mary from Holy Mount Athos - was delivered to Russia from Greece.
The head of the St. Andrew the First-Called Foundation (the organizer of this action in support of the “Sanctity of Motherhood” program), V. Yakunin, believes that “the shrine will help correct the complex demographic situation in the country,” because, among other miracles, it is famous for helping infertile couples find children.
The uniqueness of the event lies in the fact that the Belt of the Virgin Mary has not left the Vatopedi Monastery - its place of residence on Mount Athos for more than 200 years, and the territory of Greece for as much as 1600!
Icon of the Blessed Virgin Mary “Holy Belt”
Place of storage of the holy relic
Position of the Virgin's Belt
Holy belt on Russian soil
(photo by Alexey Talipov)
Belt of the Virgin Mary in Nizhny Novgorod (nne.ru)
Queues for many kilometers to the shrine
Belt consecrated on the belt of the Virgin Mary
The belt of the Virgin Mary was handed over by Archimandrite Ephraim, the rector of Vatopedi, to the rector of the St. Petersburg Theological Academy Ambrose Bishop of Gatchina and delivered to Russia. Initially, it was believed that the Belt of the Virgin Mary would visit 11 cities of Russia - St. Petersburg, Yekaterinburg, Norilsk, Vladivostok, Krasnoyarsk, Diveevo, Saransk, Samara, Rostov-on-Don, Kaliningrad and Moscow, but the huge number of people who wanted to touch the shrine forced this to be adjusted list. It included 3 more cities - Tyumen, Volgograd and Stavropol.
The Belt will arrive in Moscow on November 19 and will be there in the Cathedral of Christ the Savior until the 23rd.
History of the Belt of the Virgin Mary
According to the legend that has reached us, the Mother of God wove a belt from camel hair herself and wore it until her dormition (death). This shrine and particles of the robe are the only things of the Virgin Mary that have survived to this day.
There are two versions of how the Virgin Mary disposed of her belt.
According to one, the Mother of God, after her death, appeared to the Apostle Thomas and gave him the belt as a consolation, because... He was the only one among the apostles who did not say goodbye to her, but appeared only on the third day after the burial and grieved greatly about it.
Another version is taken from the Minology of Basil II and states that the belt was given by the Mother of God shortly before her death to two widows living in Jerusalem, and then the relic was passed on by the heirs from generation to generation. (note: Minology of Basil II - an illustrated Byzantine manuscript in the genre of hagiographic literature, compiled in 979-989)
In the 4th century, the Eastern Roman Emperor Arcadius brought the belt of the Virgin Mary to Constantinople to the Chalcopratian Church. The relic was placed in a golden ark, sealed with the royal seal. In 458, Emperor Leo I moved it to the Blachernae Church.
Until the end of the 12th century, the belt remained in Constantinople.
In the 10th century, the belt of the Virgin Mary was divided into parts. The emperors of Byzantium took one of the parts of the shrine with them on military campaigns as a talisman.
In 1185, during the struggle of Bulgaria for its independence from the Byzantine Empire, this part of the belt of the Virgin Mary was captured and ended up in Bulgaria, from where it later came to Serbia.
In the 14th century, the Serbian prince Lazar I donated the belt along with a piece of the true Cross of the Lord to the Vatopedi monastery on Mount Athos, where it is kept to this day in the sanctuary of the main monastery cathedral.
The following claim to own the remaining parts of the Virgin's belt:
- Blachernae Church in Zugdidi (Georgia);
- Cathedral of Prato (Italy);
- Trier Monastery (Germany);
- Church "Umm Zunnar" ("Temple of the Belt of the Virgin Mary") in Homs (Syria).
The celebration of the belt, called the “Position of the Honorable Belt of the Blessed Virgin Mary,” takes place on August 31 (old style), September 13 (new style).
Miracles of the Belt of the Virgin Mary
The wife of Basileus Leo VI the Wise (866-912), Zoya, was overwhelmed by an unclean spirit. The emperor asked the patriarch to open the ark with the holy relic. The belt turned out to be completely untouched by time. After it was applied to the patient, she completely got rid of her illness.
As a token of gratitude to the Mother of God for the miracle, the empress embroidered the belt with gold thread, after which it was again enclosed in the ark and sealed.
In 1827, the founder of the Hilandar monastery, Father Savva, writes: “In Enos, the pestilence of the plague stopped with the grace of the Holy Belt of the Mother of God,” and then, after the holy Belt was transported to Didimotikhon, the following entry appears: “Here, as in Enos, the pestilence ceased by the grace of the holy Belt.”
At the end of the 19th century, the Turkish Sultan Abdul-Aziz turned to the monks of Vatopedi with a request for a belt in connection with the cholera epidemic that was raging in Constantinople. As soon as the ship with the shrine on board approached the pier of Constantinople, the epidemic raging in the city stopped, and the already sick people began to recover. Abdul Aziz was so amazed by this event that he ordered the belt to be brought to his palace so that he could honor it.
In 1894, residents of the city of Madita (Asia Minor) were plagued by locusts that destroyed standing crops. Desperate people asked the fathers of the Vatopedi monastery to provide them with the belt of the Virgin Mary to fight this evil. As soon as the ship with the Belt approached the harbor, a cloud of locusts rising from the fields darkened the sky and then, to the amazement of those present, rushed into the sea.
The miraculous belt of the Virgin Mary still performs many miracles. He is especially revered for the help he provides to women suffering from infertility.
The Vatopedi monastery contains many letters in which women who have found the joy of motherhood enclose photographs of their babies born through this relic. “Agiazonites” (that is, “holy belts” - the nickname given to the Vatopedi monks) help infertile women without violating the rules of their male monastery (after all, visiting the monastery for women is strictly prohibited). On the ark, where the belt of the Virgin Mary is kept, they consecrate the ribbons and distribute them to the husbands of infertile couples. These improvised prayer belts are tied around the woman’s waist and worn until childbirth.
Address of the location of the belt of the Virgin Mary
Coordinates: N 40°18"51", E 24°12"40".
Greece, Holy Mount Athos, Vatopedi monastery (in the northeast of the Athos peninsula, between the monasteries of Esphigmen and Pantokrator).
Vatopedi Monastery
63086 Karyes, Mount Athos
Greece
phone 8-10-30-23770-41488 (call time from 09.00 to 13.00)
fax 8-10-30-23770-41462
Belt of the Virgin Mary in Russia
As already written above, the miraculous belt will be in Moscow from November 19 to 23.
Small practical advice, based on the experience of those who have already touched the holy relic.
Because There are a huge number of people who want to venerate the belt, the time of unity with this holy miracle is, to put it mildly, small, and the number of ribbons given out for consecration is also small, so it makes sense to stock up on a small ball of ribbon and consecrate it. Subsequently, it will not be difficult to cut this braid into the required number of belts.
Those suffering who, due to various circumstances, will not be able to touch the belt of the Virgin Mary, should not despair. The monks of the Vatopedi Monastery, as mentioned earlier, consecrate ribbon belts on the holy belt. Upon request to the address of the monastery with a description of their problem, the monks send them by mail along with recommendations for use.
How to properly wear the belt of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Here are excerpts from the brochure-memoir issued with the belt: “...Believers gird themselves with this belt for a while, living in repentance, confession, prayer and communion of the Holy Mysteries. Spouses do the same, adding to this fasting and marital abstinence if possible and by mutual agreement..."
So nothing complicated - tie a belt, believe, live righteously and may you be rewarded according to your Faith.
Belt of the Virgin Mary - documentary Arkadia Mamontova
On Orthodox icon The belt of the Blessed Virgin Mary is depicted leading the procession to the Savior. She holds a cover in her hands small size. Data have survived to this day about how the belt of the Mother of God was created - it was woven by Her from camel wool and She wore it until the end of her life.
The strong icon of the belt of the Blessed Virgin Mary symbolizes prayers to the Lord for the salvation of all mankind. According to one legend, the Most Holy Theotokos gave a belt to the Apostle Thomas when she appeared to him after death. Another legend says that she gave the belt to two widowed women who lived in Jerusalem. After this, it was passed on from one generation to another. Much later, this cover was given to the servants of the Vatopedi monastery, who divided the belt into two parts. One part was put into the cross, and the other into the ark. When misfortunes and epidemics occurred, the ark was taken out to the inhabitants and all the unfortunate and sick were healed. There were many legends about the belt of the Virgin Mary and it was famous for its incredible healing power. The Holy Icon of the Belt of the Virgin Mary is not only an image of the Mother of God, but also Her clothing.
The meaning of the icon of the belt of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Like any other image of Her, the icon of the belt of the Most Holy Theotokos will help one and all if you offer prayers to it sincerely and from a pure heart, if the thoughts of the sufferer are sincere and kind. Prayer to an Orthodox icon will help in defeating the enemy not only external, but also internal. This can be explained by the fact that the belt of the Virgin Mary serves as a spiritual shield over the head and over the soul.
Offering requests in prayer to the icon will help solve many problems. All who suffer can ask for a cure, the poor can ask for improvement financial condition, tramps can ask for housing, lonely people usually ask for help in finding a soul mate, as well as for a happy and harmonious life. The Christian icon of the belt of the Blessed Virgin Mary can save the most valuable thing - the human soul, save it from the fall and from temptation. And Her boundless love is enough for everyone. Prayer at the holy icon will help to overcome our internal enemies, since the Most Pure One extends Her Cover as a spiritual shield not only over our heads, but also over our souls.
Where can I buy an icon of the belt of the Blessed Virgin Mary?
The miraculous icon of the belt of the Blessed Virgin Mary can be bought in any Orthodox online store. In addition, the image can be purchased at any icon-painting workshop or embroidered on your own. A purchased or embroidered icon will protect its owner from troubles and misfortunes.
