Monday, July 30, 2012

0058 – The Miraculous Icon of Panagia Pirovolithissa – Holy Monastery of Vatopedi


In 1822, a Turkish unit of soldiers arrived at the Vatopedi Monastery gates in order to rob the Monastery of its riches and destroy as much as they could. One soldier, who also happened to be the nephew of the officer leading the unit, dared to fire a shot at the Icon of Panagia which is painted on the wall directly above the entrance of the Holy Monastery. The shot hit the right hand of the Theotokos, the bullet mark is still visible to this day.

Immediately after he fired the shot, something came over him and he went insane. He hung himself on an olive tree opposite the Monastery gates. The officer of the Turkish unit, witnessing these events, was overcome with fear and concluded that what had happened was due to his nephew’s sacrilege. He ordered his body to be thrown away without a proper burial.

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