Residents of Zaporozhye region celebrated the Protection of the Most Holy Mother of God

On Wednesday, October 14, Orthodox believers of Zaporozhye region celebrated the Intercession of the Most Holy Mother of God. This was reported in the Berdyansk diocese.

The holiday is set in honor of an event that occurred in the X century in Constantinople. During the siege of the city in the Vlachernsky church prayed fool Andrew, a former Slav. He saw the Virgin walking through the air, surrounded by angels and saints.

Andrew watched as the Virgin prayed for people for a long time, and then removed the maphoria from her head and spread it over the worshipers. This shield protected them from enemies, visible and invisible. The phenomenon was reflected in the life of Blessed Andrew, and it received worldwide veneration.

In Russia, the feast of the Intercession began to spread from the XII century. Prince Andrei Bogolyubsky remembered a wonderful vision of his heavenly patron, Blessed Andrew of Constantinople. Under him there was a tradition to build churches in honor of the Intercession after military victories.

In 1165 the Russian army defeated the Volga Bulgars. The joy of victory was overshadowed by the mortal wound of the prince's son Izyaslav. At the place of his death, Andrei Bogolyubsky built the first in Russia Pokrovskaya temple - the Intercession on the Nerl.

In the XVI century, under Tsar Ivan the Terrible, after the accession of the Kazan Khanate, a stone church of the Protection of the Mother of God was built in Moscow. Now it is known as the Cathedral of Basil the Blessed.

Believers worship the Most Holy Mother of God as the first intercessor and prayer-giver before the Lord. They seek maternal help and protection.