Prodromitsa Icon of the Mother of God

This Icon is kept in the Moldavian Theophany (now Prodromou)¹ Skete on Mount Athos, about an hour's walk from the Lavra of St. Athanasios.

In 1863, Igoumen Niphon, accompanied by several monks, went to Moldavia on the Monastery's business. Arriving at Iași, the capital of Moldavia, the Athonite monks decided to order an icon of the Mother of God for their Monastery, and began to look for a master, who would not only know his craft well, but at the same time he would lead a good life, have the fear of God, and who would be adorned with Christian piety. Soon they managed to find such a man at Iași, the aged painter, George Nikolaev (Iordache Nicolau), with whom they agreed that he should paint the icon only while fasting, before eating any food, and by himself, without the participation and assistance of others.

The old man, having agreed to these conditions, zealously set about his work. The work progressed quickly to its end: it remained only to paint the faces of the Mother of God and the Divine Child. But when the painter started to execute the last part of the work, he suffered a setback: he couldn't paint the faces correctly, despite all his efforts. He was upset and told the monks of his failure, and he even began to doubt himself, whether he had forgotten his art in his old age.

The painter increased his fasting and prayed with tears. Early one morning, after intensified fasting and fervent prayer, he entered his workroom to finish the task that had caused him so much grief and anxiety. Approaching the Icon and looking at it, he suddenly stopped, struck with amazement: from the canvas of the Icon the faces of the Mother of God and the Child looked at him, painted by an invisible hand and radiant with heavenly beauty and artistic expression. The painter was awestruck: the more he considered these faces, the more clearly he understood that a great and incomprehensible miracle of the Queen of Heaven had occurred, and that she had heard his humble and fervent prayers. Overcome with amazement, the artist did not dare to touch this Icon with his brush, but only covered it with varnish.

Rumors of this miracle quickly spread throughout the city, and many people gathered in the artist's home, so that the Athonite monks had great difficulty in moving the Icon from his house to their apartment. The miraculous event that had occurred was also made known to the local Metropolitan, His Grace Callinic (Miclescu), who at that time held the office of Metropolitan. He examined the Icon carefully and recognized the truth of the miracle. After that, a Moleben was served before the Icon, and only then were the people allowed to venerate the image of the Mother of God, which from that time began to be glorified by many miraculous signs.

A certain man had a large thorn in his eyes, and he could not see anything. He was brought in to venerate the Icon of the Mother of God and was given some Holy Water to drink, and to wash with it. He took some of it with him to his house. Three days later he received perfect sight, so that without the help of others he was able to come to give thanks to the Mother of God before her miraculous Icon for his healing.

A nobleman had a child who was unconscious for three days without any movement, so that only by the child's barely perceptible breath could one determine that a faint spark of life still remained. Despairing of saving his child from death by conventional medical means, the father turned to the Mother of God for help, praying fervently before her Icon. Taking some Holy Water to his house, he sprinkled the dying child and poured a few drops into his mouth. And a miracle occurred: the child had already died, but then he recovered.

Many other patients afflicted with various ailments received healing by praying before the Icon of the Mother of God. In view of the numerous miracles performed by the power of the Theotokos through her Holy Icon, not only did Orthodox Christians come to venerate her, but also schismatics, Armenians, and even Jews, for there was the case of a Jewish woman who received her gracious help, which was why she and her entire household were baptized.

The return of the Athonite monks with the Icon, from Iași to their Monastery on Athos, was also accompanied by many miracles.

When the monks arrived with the Icon in the city of Byrlad, the people's teacher in that city wished to receive the Holy Icon in his house, and for this purpose he sent people for it. The monks advised him to come to them if he wished to venerate the Icon, instead of bringing it to his home. But the teacher insisted on having his way. The monks decided to grant his wish. When two of them tried to lift the Icon, despite all their efforts, they could not do so. It took four monks to lift the icon, but only with great effort. When the Icon was brought to the carriage in order to put it in, a loud noise was heard, frightening everyone, both people and the horses. It turned out that the kiot containing the Icon had cracked. Then everyone knew that the Mother of God did not want to have her Icon brought to the teacher's house, and it was decided not to carry it to the teacher's home. Then a strange thing occurred: this time, two monks were able to lift the Icon without any difficulty.

A pious woman who lived outside the city of Byrlad beheld a vision in a dream telling her to go into the city to venerate the Icon. When she arrived, she recognized the very Icon that she had seen in the vision.

When the monks came to Galați there was a painter who, seeing a multitude of people flocking to venerate the Icon, began to mock it, urging people not to believe the miracle of how the faces had not been painted by any earthly artist. But when he gazed at the Icon of the Mother of God, the exression on her face seemed so fierce to him that he was struck with great horror. Then he became a zealous admirer of the wonderworking Icon.

By the time the monks arrived at their Skete on the Holy Mountain, there was a sick monk, who had not eaten any food for three weeks, nor did he speak. He was so weak that he did not move at all. Only by his breathing could anyone tell that he was still alive. When the monks arrived at the Skete, the patient seemed to awaken from a deep sleep and asked to be taken to venerate the Holy Icon. Presenting himself before the Icon, he turned to the Mother of God with this plea: "O Mother of God! You know my heart and you know my fate. If it would be good for me to live, then give me health. If, after I am healed of my illness, I do not behave better, then let me die: end my life here on earth, so that I do not suffer or endure torments there, in the grave." After praying this way, he returned to his cell, put on clean linen and his full monastic garb, and asked to partake of the Holy Mysteries of Christ. He seemed to have a clear premonition of his approaching death. And, indeed, less than an hour after receiving Communion, he departed peacefully and quietly to the Lord.

In this Skete there were even more cases of healings by the Icon of the Mother of God. The monk Sergius was healed from weakness in all his members, and from deafness, and one of the masters who worked in the same Skete was subjected to torments by an unclean spirit; as soon as he was brought to the Icon of the Mother of God, he was freed from the excruciating power of the Enemy.

In addition to the recorded accounts, many other wonderful signs took place on Mount Athos from the Moldavian Icon of the Mother of God, which continues to work miracles up to the present day.

¹ The Romanian Skete of Saint John the Forerunner on Mount Athos.