Celebration: June 11, March 20
The icon of the Mother of God “Sporuchnitsa sinners” got its name thanks to the inscription preserved on the icon itself: “Az Sporuchnitsa sinners to My Son…”. This miraculous image first became known thanks to numerous miracles that occurred in the middle of the 19th century in the Nikolaev Odrinsky monastery in the Orel province. The ancient icon of the Mother of God “The Helper of Sinners”, because of its ancient appearance, remained in the shade for a long time and stood in the old monastery chapel, not far from the monastery gate. But in 1843, many believers were shown in dreams that the icon has miraculous power at God’s behest. The icon was solemnly transferred to the monastery church, and soon the faithful began to gather there, pray and ask for healing and consolation in their sorrows and troubles. The first miracle associated with this icon was the healing of a paralyzed boy, whose mother prayed before the shrine with sincere faith. Especially famous were the miracles that occurred during the cholera epidemic, when the icon helped many terminally ill people restore their health and return to life. A magnificent three-altar church was built in the monastery in honor of the miraculous image of the “Helper of Sinners”. The icon shows the Mother of God holding a Baby in her left hand, and the Baby embraces her right hand with both of her small hands. The heads of the Virgin and Child are crowned with crowns. In 1848, thanks to the efforts of the Muscovite Dimitri Boncheskul, a list of this miraculous icon was created and placed in his house. Soon after, it became known about the miraculous healing of many patients through prayers in front of this list. This miraculous list was transferred to the Church of St. Nicholas in Khamovniki, where a chapel was built in honor of the icon of the Mother of God “The Helper of Sinners”. It is believed that the original icon, which gained fame in 1843, is currently located in the St. Nicholas Convent in Odrina. In the past, after the monastery was destroyed in the 1920s, many of its icons were scattered around the surrounding villages. This icon came to a resident of the village of Stary Khotynetsky district in the Orel region. In the 1970s, her house burned down, and she gave the icon to her neighbors, and then to a certain Raisa, a parishioner of the Karachevo Church of All Saints. In 1994, the latter took monastic vows and went with the icon to a monastery near Odessa, but soon returned, and in December 1995 the miraculous icon was returned to its native monastery. In addition to the March 7 holiday, the May 29 holiday is also dedicated to the miracle-working icon “Sporuchnitsa sinners”.
