Све то красно, похвално, позитивно о православљу, католичанству и протестантизму

[Дијана.]

[Дијана.]

interesantno: je li ovo pripada grkokatolicima ili kako vec...

[Дијана.]

interesantno: je li ovo pripada grkokatolicima ili kako vec...

[Zayron]

interesantno: je li ovo pripada grkokatolicima ili kako vec...

Pa moglo bi to tako biti prema imenu te gospođe ili žene koja ga je postavila, izgleda tipično ukrajinsko ili rusinsko. Grkokatolika je u Slovačkoj i na Ukrajini otprilike toliko koliko recimo samih katolika na cijelom Balkanu a možda čak i nešto malo više, no statistički u odnosu na cjelokupno stanovništvo su ipak 10-ti procentna manjina.

religion percent

Ukrainian Orthodox Church – Patriarch of Moscow 50,0%

Ukrainian Orthodox Church – Kiev Patriarchate 14,9%

 

Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church 2.8%

 

Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church 8,0%

 

Roman Catholicism 2.2%

 

Protestanism 2,2%

 

Islam 1,0%

 

Judaism 0,6%

 

Others 2,2%

 

Inače što se tiče tih videa danas vlada velika razmjena "large échange" tih informacija, oni hrišćani sa Istoka rado upoznavaju zapadno hrišćanstvo a oni za zapad istočno hrišćanstvo, tradicije i liturgiju što mislim da je vrlo lijepa stvar. Sama bi se vrlo začudila kad bi vidjela na primjer koliko bi ikona samo našla na zilotskim katoličkim Forumima gdje sam ja na par zalutao jer prvo ne znaš o čemu se radi kad je sve na engleskom. Tamo ih imaš skoro kolikoi na nekakvom pravoslavnom Forumu. Pogledaj recimo ikona s jednog takvog zilotskog katoličkog sajta:

[Zayron]

Evo sad sasvim zoomovana, iz bliza ista ta ikona, inače u malo nesvakidašnjem, nešto modernijem ikonopisnom maniru pojmljena: lijepa i zanimljiva, glavno da se pred njom mole, kako vidiš tamo je klecatko, klecalo, ta klupa za klećanje. to je slika iz jedne tridentinske katoličke crkve iz USA gdje oni ti američki ziloti još imaju Mise na latinskom po takozvanom tridentinskom obredu, katolički staroobrednici. A takve ikone tamo, a u svakog drugog, no šta bi rekla na to? Danas je kako vidiš s tim dosta to komplikovano, odavnoo već ne važi kao što je važilo prije da katolici imaju samo slike s baroknom ađelima i Da Vinčijevskim Madonama.

a ovo su grkokatolički bogoslovi iz Slovačke iz bogoslovije u Prešovu pa ih pustimo da zapjevaju na crkvenoslovenskom "Agni Parthene" pod tom Bogorodičinom ikonom.

"Agni Parthene - Αγνή Παρθένε"

http://www.facebook....262414337113240

Ešte prežívame poprazdenstvo sviatku Narodenia presvätej Bohorodičky tak ponúkame Vám video s oslavnou piesňou k Bohorodičke od Atoského mnícha prepodobného Nektária Eginského .

V gréckom originály s názvom "Agni Parthene - Αγνή Παρθένε" a v cirkevnoslovanskom jazyku "Marije Ďivo", ktorú nebeské mocnosti spievali pred týmto mníchom počas zjavenia Bohorodičky sa tomuto mníchovi.

Pieseň "Agni Parthene" v cirkevnoslovanskom jazyku spieva:

(Zbor sv. Romana Sladkopevca - Gréckokatolícky kňazský seminár v Prešove, Slovensko.)

Crkvenoslovenski:

Марие, Дево Чистая, Пресвятая Богородице,

Радуйся, Невесто неневестная.

Царице Мати Дево, Руно всех покрывающее,

Радуйся, Невесто неневестная.

Превысшая Небесных Сил, Нетварное Сияние.

Радуйся, Невесто неневестная.

Ликов девичьих Радосте, и Ангелов Превысшая,

Радуйся, Невесто неневестная.

Небес Честная Сило, и Свете паче все светов,

Радуйся, Невесто неневестная.

Честнейшая Владычице всех Небесных Воинств,

Радуйся, Невесто неневестная.

Всех праотцев Надеждо, пророков Исполнение,

Радуйся, Невесто неневестная.

В подвизех Ты — Помоще, Кивоте Бога Слова,

Радуйся, Невесто неневестная.

И девам — Ликование, и матерем — Отрадо,

Радуйся, Невесто неневестная.

Целомудрия Наставнице, душ наших Очищение,

Радуйся, Невесто неневестная.

Покрове ширший облака, и страждущих Пристанище,

Радуйся, Невесто неневестная.

Немощных Покров и Заступнице, Надеждо ненадежных,

Радуйся, Невесто неневестная.

Марие — Мати Христа — Истиннаго Бога,

Радуйся, Невесто неневестная.

Ааронов Жезле Прозябший, Сосуде тихой радости,

Радуйся, Невесто неневестная.

Всех сирых и вдов Утешение, в бедах и скорбех — Помоще,

Радуйся, Невесто неневестная.

Священная и Непорочная, Владычице Всепетая,

Радуйся, Невесто неневестная.

Приклони ко мне милосердие Божественнаго Сына,

Радуйся, Невесто неневестная.

Ходатайце спасения, припадая взываю Ти:

Радуйся, Невесто неневестная.

Český preklad:

Čistá Panno a Vládkyně, přesvatá Bohorodičko

Raduj se Nevěsto nesnoubená

Rouno milostí orosené, Panno, Matko a Královno

Raduj se Nevěsto nesnoubená

Na nebesích jsi vyvýšená, nad záři slunce jasnější

Raduj se Nevěsto nesnoubená

Radosti sborů panenských, nad anděly jsi ctěnější

Raduj se Nevěsto nesnoubená

Nad oblohu jsi skvostnější, nad její světlo čistější

Raduj se Nevěsto nesnoubená

Vládneš nad šiky nebeskými, ty jsi svatá nad svatými

Raduj se Nevěsto nesnoubená

Marie, provždy Panno, Paní celého světa

Raduj se Nevěsto nesnoubená

Neposkvrněná Nevěsto a Panovnice přesvatá

Raduj se Nevěsto nesnoubená

Marie, Nevěsto i Paní, radosti naší příčino

Raduj se Nevěsto nesnoubená

Marie Matko i Panno, Dívko i ctnostná Královno

Raduj se Nevěsto nesnoubená

Nad netělesné cherubíny bez přirovnání ctěnější

Raduj se Nevěsto nesnoubená

Nad nebeské trůny vznešenější, nad serafíny slavnější

Raduj se Nevěsto nesnoubená

Vesel se písni cherubů, raduj se hymne andělů

Raduj se Nevěsto nesnoubená

Vesel se písni serafů, raduj se štěstí archandělů

Raduj se Nevěsto nesnoubená

Vesel se pokoji, radosti a spasitelný přístave

Raduj se Nevěsto nesnoubená

Božího Slova klenotnice a věčně kvetoucí růže

Raduj se Nevěsto nesnoubená

Vesel se, rajská zahrado, věčného žití hojnosti

Raduj se Nevěsto nesnoubená

Vesel se, strome života, prameni nesmrtelnosti

Raduj se Nevěsto nesnoubená

Tobě se klaním Královno a s pokorou tě vzývám

Raduj se Nevěsto nesnoubená

O milost tvou tě nyní prosím a s úctou tobě zpívám

Raduj se Nevěsto nesnoubená

Dívko vznešená, Panovnice, hlubino svaté naděje

Raduj se Nevěsto nesnoubená

Vroucně tě vzývám, orodovnice a posvěcený chráme

Raduj se Nevěsto nesnoubená

Ujmi se mne má ochránkyně a zachraň mne od zlého

Raduj se Nevěsto nesnoubená

Zastaň se mne má přímluvkyně, doveď do žití věčného

Raduj se Nevěsto nesnoubená

[Дијана.]

Pa moglo bi to tako biti prema imenu te gospođe ili žene koja ga je postavila, izgleda tipično ukrajinsko ili rusinsko. Grkokatolika je u Slovačkoj i na Ukrajini otprilike toliko koliko recimo samih katolika na cijelom Balkanu a možda čak i nešto malo više, no statistički u odnosu na cjelokupno stanovništvo su ipak 10-ti procentna manjina.

 

Inače što se tiče tih videa danas vlada velika razmjena "large échange" tih informacija, oni hrišćani sa Istoka rado upoznavaju zapadno hrišćanstvo a oni za zapad istočno hrišćanstvo, tradicije i liturgiju što mislim da je vrlo lijepa stvar. Sama bi se vrlo začudila kad bi vidjela na primjer koliko bi ikona samo našla na zilotskim katoličkim Forumima gdje sam ja na par zalutao jer prvo ne znaš o čemu se radi kad je sve na engleskom. Tamo ih imaš skoro kolikoi na nekakvom pravoslavnom Forumu. Pogledaj recimo ikona s jednog takvog zilotskog katoličkog sajta:

Da, Subertova melodija 'Ave Maria' je predivna, dira u srce i zaista prenosi taj dozivljaj strahopostovanja i umiljenja kako i treba himna Bogorodici.

To s tim ikonama iznenadjuje. Vasi ziloti, tj. hard-line katolici, priznaju divotu nasih ikona?! (Digresija, je li to, i ostalo sto vodi priblizavanju i priznavanju, novina kod vas, nakon 1964., ili kad je to skinuta uzajamna anatema?)

Vidjela sam gore i tu sliku katedrale u Salcburgu gdje ima -nasa- ikona, pa me i to iznenadilo. Krunica (sadrzaj molitve) me podsjetio na nase molitve i akatiste, to sam vec rekla; vidjela sam tek sad da si na drugoj temi vec rekao da je to najslicnije nasem Akatistu Preslatkom Gospodu IsHs.

Kao sto vec rekoh, isti Duh stvara (i stvarao je!) duhovno naslijedje na obe strane! Slava Bogu!

[Zayron]

@Dijana

Znaš li koja je ovo ikona koja se nalazila u privatnoj kapeli Pape Ivana Pavla II (Woytile) i pred kojojm se on svaki dan molio i gdje je sada? Baš me zanima hoćeš li pogoditi ili možda i znati nešto više o njoj?

[Zayron]

Čekam da netko odgovori na ovo gore pitanje, Dijana ili bilo ko drugi. Stvarno niko ne prepoznaje tu Bogorodičinu ikonu u postu gore? Ostavim vam još vremena do sutra, dok se neko ne sjeti gdje ju je mogao vidjeti. Do tada evo "Salve Regina", himan "Zdravo Kraljice" na latinskom s ikonom Bogorodice, pjeva je njemački katedralni hor iz Ensiedelna, nije to tako različito od vašeg pojanja u crkvi, zar ne?

Choir of the Cathedral of Einsiedeln, Salve Regina

the track is listed as:

"anonymous/gregorian: Salve Regina", choir concerto in the Dome of Aachen,

recorded 1968 (!!!).

Choir of the cathedral of Einsiedeln

Choral Master: Pater Roman Bannwart

Organ: Pater Cornelius Winiger

Cond.: Pater Daniel Meier

think the "anonymous" expresses, that the piece comes out of the monastic tradition.

[Дијана.]

@Dijana

Znaš li koja je ovo ikona koja se nalazila u privatnoj kapeli Pape Ivana Pavla II (Woytile) i pred kojojm se on svaki dan molio i gdje je sada? Baš me zanima hoćeš li pogoditi ili možda i znati nešto više o njoj?

Ne vidi se jasno, ali jako podsjeca na jednu cudotvornu Bogorodicinu ikonu. Ne znam napamet naziv crvenilo

Da ne bih isla na google ti mi reci. Sto, ko mu je poklonio i gdje je sada?

[Дијана.]

Čekam da netko odgovori na ovo gore pitanje, Dijana ili bilo ko drugi. Stvarno niko ne prepoznaje tu Bogorodičinu ikonu u postu gore? Ostavim vam još vremena do sutra, dok se neko ne sjeti gdje ju je mogao vidjeti. Do tada evo "Salve Regina", himan "Zdravo Kraljice" na latinskom s ikonom Bogorodice, pjeva je njemački katedralni hor iz Ensiedelna, nije to tako različito od vašeg pojanja u crkvi, zar ne?

ne, nije 'toliko razlicito'. i sve himne Bogorodici su predivne, jer nastaju iz uzvisenog nadahnuca

[Zayron]

Ne vidi se jasno, ali jako podsjeca na jednu cudotvornu Bogorodicinu ikonu. Ne znam napamet naziv crvenilo

Da ne bih isla na google ti mi reci. Sto, ko mu je poklonio i gdje je sada?

Da, ni ne čudim se da te "podsjeća" kad je to jedna od najpoznatijih ikona što postoje na svijetu ikad naslikanih, i čuvenih po svojoj čudotvornosti vjekovima, samo je nisi navikla vidjeti ovako na slici s papom, ja sam ti je već pokazao, dao link i poslao te tamo da je vidiš i još nešto ti pri tom napisao. Sjeti se, nije bilo to davno, pred mjesec, dva dana. A naravno da je to u toj privatnoj papinoj kapeli original, nikakva kopija. Neću dalje da ti pišem da ti ne bih previše "napovjedio", valjda ćeš se sad sjetiti. Probaj to još jednom prije neho što vam to otkrijem ja, imaš još jednu šansu za tačan odgovor.

[Дијана.]

Da, ni ne čudim se da te "podsjeća" kad je to jedna od najpoznatijih ikona što postoje na svijetu ikad naslikanih, i čuvenih po svojoj čudotvornosti vjekovima, samo je nisi navikla vidjeti ovako na slici s papom, ja sam ti je već pokazao, dao link i poslao te tamo da je vidiš i još nešto ti pri tom napisao. Sjeti se, nije bilo to davno, pred mjesec, dva dana. A naravno da je to u toj privatnoj papinoj kapeli original, nikakva kopija. Neću dalje da ti pišem da ti ne bih previše "napovjedio", valjda ćeš se sad sjetiti. Probaj to još jednom prije neho što vam to otkrijem ja, imaš još jednu šansu za tačan odgovor.

Sjecam se kad si rekao: sve svoje brige ostavi tu, ja sam mislila da si je nasao na internetu pa ti se svidjela, nisam znala da ima neka posebna prica, jos manje da je kod vaseg pape. Definitivno je 'nasa' ikona, tj. vizantijskim stilom radjena - koliko je stara i otkad je kod pape, je li je on dobio na poklon ili naslijedio od prije... bas zanimljivo

[Zayron]

Богоматерь Казанская

http://www.xxc.ru/or...nskay/index.htm

Nr 94 Ikone Gottesmutter Kazanskaja

I ovo je jedna od tih takozvanih autentičnih kopija. One su priznate među muzeolozima kao takvima od velike umjetničke i muzeološke vrijednosti i kao kopije, Crkva međutim na to ima druga mjerila jer u liturgiji ne igra najvažniju ulogu ono što na ikoni vidimo već upravo to što ne vidimo i čemu vjerujemo. Zato se Crkva toliko ne zaobira i ne zadržava nad pitanjima originalnosti i autentičnosti u tom takvom strogo umjetničkom i muzeološkom smislu.

Dakle radi se ikoni Bogorodice Kazanske, velike zaštitnice cijele Rusi. U međuvremenu sam cijelu noć sinoć pretraživao cijeli internet i došao do nevjerovatne priče koja je vezana za tu ikunu a ravna tim najzanimljivijim detektivkama Agate Kristi. Navedem samo kratko članak koji malo rasvjetljava istorijat i putešestvija ove čudotvorne ikone:

Sama ikona, poznata i kao Kazanskaja, pripada vrsti Odigitria, "Ona koja pokazuje put", i prikazuje Majku Božju koja na rukama drži Maloga Isusa, imala je više nego zanimljiv "životni put". Njezino točno podrijetlo nije poznato, no zna se da je u ruski grad Kazan na Volgi došla izravno iz Carigrada u 13. stoljeću. U 16. stoljeću jednostavno je nestala; po svemu sudeći, bila je skrivena u strahu od Tatara koji su godine 1555. zauzeli Kazan. Nakon požara koji je 1579. godine uništio grad, Gospa se ukazala djevojčici po imenu Matriona i pokazala joj, pod ruševinama jedne kuće, mjesto gdje se nalazila ikona. Kako je u kronici napisao metropolit Kazana Ermogen, on isprva nije vjerovao u tu priču, no, budući da je narod prihvatio ikonu kao najdragocjenije blago, i sam je uvidio njezinu vrijednost. Od tada se zbog brojnih molitava pred ikonom događaju čuda, a s vremenom je postala ikona ruske carske obitelji koja gradi crkve u čast Majke Božje Kazanske.

Godine 1721. car Petar Veliki preselio je glavni grad u Petrograd i prenio ikonu u tamošnju novu katedralu, odakle je Bogorodica Kazanska bdjela nad sudbinom Rusije. O prisutnosti Kazanskaje u katedrali godine 1900. svjedoči i poznati pisac Mihael Bulgakov. Četiri godine kasnije ikona je, u srebrenom okviru optočena dragim kamenjem ukradena i gubi joj se trag. Vjerojatno je prodana na nekoj od aukcija kao i mnoge druge dragocjenosti nakon Oktobarske revolucije. Američka katolička udruga pod nazivom Plava vojska kupila ju je za dva milijuna dolara i 1970. godine darovala Marijanskom svetištu u Fatimi.

Poznato je kako je Majka Božja u fatimskim ukazanjima spominjala Rusiju i njezino obraćenje od bezbožnog komunizma. Ivanu Pavlu II. darovana je u Fatimi i nije pokazivana u javnosti dok nisu nedavno zajedničke komisije Vatikana i Moskve pregledale sliku i zaključile da je autentična iako se ne radi o originalnoj ikoni iz 16. stoljeća, već o jednoj kasnijoj kopiji. Patrijarh Aleksej II. to će prisnažiti kako se vrijednost ikone sastoji u njenoj duhovnoj energiji koja je nastala preko molitava ranijih generacija, kako u Rusiji, tako i u Fatimi.

I sam Sveti Otac pridonio je velikom duhovnom značenju ikone pred kojom se godinama molio u svojoj sobi, istaknuo je ruski patrijarh. Nije stoga čudno što se Papa s ganućem rastajao od ikone koja je, kako je kazao, majčinskim pogledom pratila njegovo svakodnevno služenje Crkvi od kada je prije više od deset godina preko Providnosti stigla u dom Petrova nasljednika. "Koliko sam puta, od toga dana, zazivao Majku Božju Kazansku, moleći je da štiti i vodi ruski narod koji joj je privržen, i da ubrza trenutak u kojem će svi učenici njezina Sina, priznavajući se uzajamno braćom, znati ponovno uspostaviti narušeno jedinstvo", kazao je Papa na oproštaju s ikonom u Vatikanu.

http://arhiv.slobodn.../temedana02.asp

Dakle ta originalna je 1904. godine ukradena a navodno uništena, prema nevjerodostojnom priznanju samog izvršioca krađe koji je poslije pronađen i osuđen zbog toga zatvoru na Sibiru. Zato se smatralo da je nestala, izgubljena ali i postoji i dalje a povremeno se objavljuje na takozvanim "crnim" nelegalnim aukcijama umjetnina po svijetu. Ta koju je dobio Papa na dar nije također originalom, taj prema informacijama same riske pravoslavne Crkve ne posjeduje nitko ali autentičnom kopijom, što je i mene dosta zbunilo jer nisam nikakav poznavalac umjetnina i pri pretraživanju engleskih materijala onda takva odborna terminologija može često neupućene ljude dovesti u zabunu. Dakle ta kopija kojiu je papa Wojtila dobio na dar a potom vratio u Rusiju je vrlo starom, ustvari najstarijom i najdragocjenijom kopijom te ikone koju više ustvari tu originalnu, mislim u muzeološkom smislu ne posjeduje nitko. U liturgijskom smislu ruska pravoslavna Crkva za original smatra primjerak koji se danas nalazi u Sankt Petersburgu, Petrogradu ali međutim ni ta nije ona izvorna, dakle dalja kopija priznata adekvetnom zamjenom originala u liturgijskom smislu. Da ne bude sve tako jednostavno cijela ta priča se dalje komplikuje tim kako se u jednom benediktinskom bavarskom manastiru u Njemačkoj obrela još jedna isto stara kopija koju je jedan vrlo pobožan vojnik, veliki štovatelj Bogorodičin odnio sa sobom u Njemačku iz straha da bi mogla biti uništena tokom bombardovanja i vojnih operacija ili ukradena i u dobroj vjeri da se radi zaista o originalnoj ikoni Bogorodice Kazanske. Po svojoj smrti ostavio ju je u nasljedstvo svom sinu a s amanetom kad za to sazrije brijeme i u Rusiji više ne budu na vlasti komunisti ikona bude vraćena u Rusiju. Međutim taj njegov sin se po očevoj smrti u međuvremenu zamonašio a prema pravilima Reda se pri ulasku i monaški stalež ili stav ima odreći svoh dragocjenosti , novca i imanja. Tako se on odrekao svega čega je mogao ali pošto je obavezan ispuniti očevu želju zamolio je benediktine da li bi oni tu ikonu preuzeli i primili na sebe obavezu da je vrate čim za to nastane prva dobra prilika i komunisti tamo više ne budu na vlasti na što su oni i pristali. Tako je i ta ikona za koje je taj njemački vojnik mislio da je tom originalnom svečano vraćena u Rusiju, naknadnom expertizom se utvrdilo da ni ta nije izvornim originalom već vrlo uspjelom, također starom i vrlo dragocjenom kopijom koja je bila izložena k štovanju u jednoj kapeli ili manjoj crkvi u Mcensku.

Казанская икона Богоматери (Ватикан)

[Zayron]

Evo sada dva snimka o toj drugoj ikoni koju je odnio sa sobom taj njemački vojnik, na prvom snimku je njegov sin koji je sada opatom tog manastira. A ikonu je predao episkopu Volokolamskom +Ilarionu.

kazanskaja ikona

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yVDkH6pK5s0&NR=1

Казанская иконы Божией Матери возращается в Мценск

[Zayron]

A supernatural icon for Mother Russia

The Virgin of Kazan is one of the most revered Russian religious icons. Its disappearance at the time of the Russian Revolution was a catastrophe, but its resurgence and its link with Pope John Paul II and Fatima has confirmed the icon’s mythical status of securing the fate of “Mother Russia”.

Philip Coppens

The fall of the Iron Curtain in 1989 not only meant a new era for politicians; it also changed the religious landscape of a country known as “Mother Russia” – a once extremely religious country. Communism, after all, had been atheist, whereas the new Russia was again assumed to have freedom of religion. Pope John Paul II had always set his sights on it and tried to improve relations with the Orthodox Church, though a visit to Russia itself was blocked by the Russian Orthodox Church itself, who saw it as the Vatican trying to take advantage of the situation. In November 2003, Russian president Vladimir Putin did meet the pope in Rome. During the meeting, an icon known as the Virgin of Kazan was brought from the Pope’s private chapel into the Vatican Library, where the meeting was held. Putin watched as the Pope blessed the icon and then the Russian leader himself kissed it. Few observers seemed to realise the importance of this event. Putin and the Pope, however, did.

The Virgin of Kazan is one of Russia’s most sacred relics. The icon was discovered on July 8, 1579, in the city of Kazan. Interestingly, it was the Virgin Mary herself who in an apparition revealed the artefact’s location – it was buried – to a little girl, Matrena. The icon apparently shone as bright as the sun and the Virgin instructed the child to tell the monks of a nearby church about what she had just experienced. When they dug at the indicated location, the icon was recovered. A copy of the icon was sent to Czar Ivan the Terrible, who had a cloister built on the site where the icon had been found. Matrena, as well as her mother, then joined the religious community that was installed there.

In 1612, St. Sergei was said to have appeared to Bishop Arseni. The saint – who had died in 1392 – told the bishop that the Lady of Kazan would intervene in battle. Hence, the icon was brought to lead the troops of Prince Pozharski that were trying to free Moscow. True to the prophecy, on November 27, 1612, the Kremlin was liberated.

Ever since, whenever Russia had to go into battle, the Virgin of Kazan or one of its copies was carried in front of the army. Later, the Virgin also rescued Russia from Napoleon’s troops. In September 1812, Marshal Koutesov took the icon from Moscow’s Cathedral and rallied his troops to cut off Napoleon’s supply routes. As such, the icon is often considered to be a “palladium”, an image upon which the safety of a city or a country – Mother Russia – was said to depend.

At the time of the Russian Revolution, the basilica housing the icon was destroyed, apparently to prove that God did not exist. As great sledges and rams knocked down the church, loudspeakers blared: “You see, there is no God! We destroy the church of the so-called protectress of Russia, and nothing happens!” A green plot of grass in front of Lenin’s tomb marked the site where the Basilica of Our Lady of Kazan had once stood as the national Marian Shrine of Russia.

But what happened to the icon at the time of the Russian Revolution? Though some argue that it was sold by the Emperor’s family to sustain itself in exile (a hope that never materialised for them), it is more probable that the icon was sold to help pay for the Bolshevik Revolution. This was the opinion of American art expert Frank Dorland, who studied the icon in the 1960s.

From the little that is known, the icon apparently reached Western Europe in 1935. On April 15, 1953, the English adventurer “Mike” Mitchell-Hedges – known for his infamous crystal skull – was approached by letter from a business friend, Arthur Hillman, who was negotiating the purchase of a collection of great historical and artistic value. It was initially referred to as “The Louis Tussaud’s Collection”, likely because it was where the collection had been on display, in his museum in Blackpool (England). Between April 1953 and September 1953, several letters were exchanged between Mitchell-Hedges and Hillman, until, on September 23, 1953, Mitchell-Hedges finally purchased the icon. It is known that Mitchell-Hedges never came to see the artefact prior to purchasing it and it is therefore unclear whether he fully realised what he was buying.

What happened to the icon between 1917 and 1953 is difficult, if not impossible, to assess. Some suppose that the icon was actually in the possession of Herman Göring, Hitler’s designated successor and commander of the Luftwaffe. This isn’t so bizarre, as in the same lot put up for sale, there was a copy of “Mein Kampf”. It is unknown whether Mitchell-Hedges bought the entire lot or merely the Virgin of Kazan.

Between 1953 and 1965, the precious relic hung in the home of Anna Mitchell-Hedges, Mike’s daughter. Though there was no doubt that the relic was most important, the question was whether it was one of the many copies or the original icon. One of those who tried to answer that question was Cyril G.E. Bunt, the author of a book on Russian art and – for 49 years – on the staff of London Victoria and Albert Museum. “Experts will agree,” he wrote, “that it is the work of a great icon painter of the 16th century […] the pigments and the wood of the panel are perfectly preserved as exhaustive X-ray tests have proved, and have mellowed with age.”

His verdict might seem surprising now, but we need to note that in the 1950s, at the height of the Cold War, there was still great confusion about which relic went where how. He concluded that the Mitchell-Hedges icon was a copy of the original icon, but that it was nevertheless the artefact that had been carried by Prince Pozharski during his march on Moscow with his Nationalist Army in 1612. Today, that is known to have been the original icon, not a copy.

At the time, however, it were the likes of Grand Duchess Zenia and priests that had actually handled the original icon in Moscow, like Patriarch Leonty of New York, that aided the verification of the artefact as being the original icon. The identification occurred through the rizza, with its configuration of jewels, which is the easiest method to attain a positive identification: the icon in the possession of the Mitchell-Hedges family had a rizza that only the original icon, on display in Moscow in 1917, possessed.

The Mitchell-Hedges Virgin of Kazan was the original… but what to do with it? With Russia off-limits, a new venue for the Virgin of Kazan had to be found and as early as 1963, there seemed to be but one choice: the Portuguese town of Fatima, where in 1917 the Virgin Mary had apparently appeared to three small children. John Shahovskoy, the Archbishop of San Francisco and the Western United States, wrote how “the Roman Catholic faith holds that the blessed Virgin appeared at Fatima and predicted the reconversion to the government of Holy Russia to Christianity. There must be something more than coincidence that this occurred in 1917 AD, the year that our beloved Russia was lost to the Bolsheviks and Communism.”

Meanwhile, in 1964-1965, a special pavilion was erected at World Trade Fair in New York to house the icon so that people could come to admire it. On October 4, 1965, Pope Paul VI came to bless the icon.

And then entered the “Blue Army”, an American organisation that had embraced the communist strife and the role of Fatima. The icon was the perfect billboard to promote their campaign. The Blue Army had its first “official contact” with the icon on September 13, 1965, at the New York World’s Fair. That night, the pavilion was filled with members of the Blue Army, led by the Bishop of Fatima himself. It appears that the entire night was spent in adoration and prayer for the conversion of Russia and world peace. Blue Army groups around the world, in many cities, held similar all night vigils on that same date.

The Blue Army learned about the opportunity to purchase the icon in January 1970. Anna Mitchell-Hedges demanded $125,000 for the relic – a most reasonable price.

Father Karl Pazelt, the director of the Byzantine Centre in San Francisco, begged the leaders of the Blue Army to make sure the necessary funds were raised. Then, it seems, another miracle of Fatima happened, for the Blue Army were able to purchase the artefact, even though officially there was nothing to indicate they would ever be able to obtain the required funds. This is why some accounts claim that Anna Mitchell-Hedges was only paid $25,000.

Once the icon was purchased, it was taken to Fatima. Russia’s most precious relic now hung in the very place where the Virgin had predicted the vice that was communism. It therefore doesn’t take a genius to figure out what the Soviet communist regime did next: it suggested that the icon was not the original one. The Soviet powers were perfectly aware that the icon was courting a date with destiny… and became extremely nervous.

The West, of course, wanted to see the icon returned to Moscow, as its return would be interpreted by the Russian people as an omen that the evil of communism was about to be vanquished by the Virgin. But would the people of Russia rebel against their leaders, inspired by the return of the icon? And would such a revolt be successful? That was definitely not a foregone conclusion. And if the icon failed to bring about a popular revolt, then what? It was therefore agreed that the icon would remain in Fatima until Russia was free from communism… a far safer option.

What happened next, was a surprise, for rather than to Russia, the icon went to the Vatican… to the private quarters of Pope John Paul II. After the papal assassination attempt in 1981, the pope became convinced that his life had been saved by the intervention of the Virgin herself. He believed that the Third Secret of Fatima had predicted his survival and that the Virgin had personally saved him from death. Equally, the Polish-born pope tried to bring religion back to the communist countries.

When he discovered the icon in 1991, during one of his many visits to Fatima, he realised the icon was most important, politically, but maybe also to his own personal cause. He asked to have it transferred to the Vatican, where it was installed in the papal apartment. In 1993, the Blue Army consented to this transfer.

Rome was never meant to be its destination, of course. In 1989, when communism had collapsed, Metropolitan Alexy of Leningrad, the future Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow, visited Seattle and had dinner with Father Frederick Miller, then-executive director of the Blue Army. The meeting could be seen as the first step in a process that might see the return of the icon to Russia.

But in 1993, it was no longer the Blue Army, but the pope who was negotiating with the Russian Orthodox leaders. The pope did not merely want to see the object on display in Moscow, he personally wished to visit Moscow or Kazan, when he would return the icon to the Russian Orthodox Church. It was clear that the Vatican wanted to show to the people of Mother Russia that it was the Catholic Church, not the Orthodox Church, which had preserved their most precious relic. Unsurprisingly, these plans were blocked by the Moscow Patriarchate. They wanted to see the relic’s return, but without the Vatican’s fingerprints all over the event.

Officially, the pope wanted to deliver the relic personally as a sign of rapprochement between the two Churches that had been divided since 1054. This was also the dream of the Blue Army, but it was clear that this would be a very high-profile state visit, which would have to meet with the total approval of Russian president Vladimir Putin. The president, it seemed, did not wish to see a papal visit to Mother Russia either… and definitely not one in which he brought the Virgin of Kazan back.

Little happened for a decade, but after Putin’s visit to the Vatican in 2003, it became obvious that the seriously frail and aging pope would not be invited to Russia any time soon. Pope John Paul II realised that he had to lower the stakes if he wanted to accomplish anything. As such, he consented in a lower key process in which a Vatican missionary would present the icon to the Russian Church.

In late August 2004, the Pope said goodbye to the icon in an incense-filled Liturgy of the Word celebration inside the Vatican. “How many times have I prayed to the Mother of God of Kazan,” he lamented about the icon that had hung over his desk in the papal apartments for the past ten years, “asking her to protect and guide the Russian people and to precipitate the moment in which all the disciples of her Son, recognizing themselves as brothers, will know how to reconstruct in fullness their compromised unity.” He then handed the icon over to two emissaries, Cardinals Walter Kasper and Theodore McCarrick, the latter archbishop of Washington, who took it to Russia.

Interestingly, Cardinal Walter Kasper, the president of the Pontifical Council for Christian Unity, stated that the icon was “a symbol of the new Europe and its formation, of which Russia is a part.” He added that “Our Lady of Kazan is the protector of Europe and its Christian roots. […] After two world wars, and the phenomena of secularisation, Europe needs to be founded again in the faith.”

On August 26, 2004, the Virgin of Kazan went on display on the altar of St. Peter’s Basilica. Two days later, it was delivered to Moscow. Vatican Cardinal Walter Kasper handed the icon back to the Russian Orthodox Church in a ceremony at the Kremlin’s Cathedral of the Assumption, as a personal gift from Pope John Paul II.

It would be almost one year later, on the next feast day of the holy icon – July 21, 2005 – that Patriarch Alexius II and Mintimer Shaymiev, the President of Tatarstan, placed it in the Annunciation Cathedral of the Kazan Kremlin. The Virgin of Kazan was back where she belonged – and where she had conquered, it seemed, the forces of communism. Destiny had been fulfilled, through divine will and/or political engineering, with the participation of several popes, an English treasure hunter, maybe Hitler’s inner circle, and maybe even the Virgin Mary herself.

This article appeared in Atlantis Rising, Issue 87 (May - June 2011).

http://www.philipcoppens.com/kazan.html