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Unless you are celebrating the baptismal holiday or you know someone who celebrates it, you probably don’t know that the Serbian Orthodox Church today celebrates a very unusual holiday – putting on the belt of the Blessed Mother of God.
It is a festival dedicated to one of the Christian relics: the belt, which according to tradition belonged to the mother of Jesus Christ, the Mother of God Mary. The belt was supposedly woven from camel hair by the Mother of God herself, is kept in the Vatopedi monastery on Mount Athos and represents the only treasure preserved from the life of the mother of Christ.
The story says that after the death of the Mother of God, Saint Thomas found only one belt in the tomb: all that was left of the Mother of God after his success. He took it and kept it as a relic for the rest of his life.
The belt itself had an interesting history: in the first centuries it was kept in Jerusalem, and in the 4th century it was transferred to Cappadocia. They then placed it in a golden coffin and took it to Constantinople, where it was not removed until the time of Leo the Wise.
Then, according to legend, he cured Empress Zoe, for whom the doctors of that time could not find a cure, and she embroidered the entire belt with a golden thread as a sign of gratitude to the Blessed Mother of God, who thus acquired her appearance. current.
The laying of the belt of the Blessed Mother of God has been celebrated as an official church holiday since the mid-12th century.
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In our region, this unusual holiday is more respected by women and couples who cannot have children. On this day, they go to churches and monasteries dedicated to the Mother of God, because it is believed that prayers will bring them offspring.
There are also those who celebrate this holiday as a baptismal holiday.
The belt was also with Prince Lazar.
Despite its age, transfers and occasional thefts, the Virgin’s belt has been preserved to this day. The sanctuary was divided into parts several times and found in various countries, they fought for it and took it with them to battles as a guarantee of victory.
The belt was located in Constantinople until the 12th century, when after the defeat of Emperor Isaac by the Bulgarian Emperor Assam in 1,185. years stolen and transferred to Bulgaria.
In the 14th century, the destiny of the belt of the Mother of God became intertwined with the destiny of our people. That is, the relic passed into the hands of Prince Lazar, who carefully protected it.
It was the Serbian ruler who donated the belt, along with a piece of the Holy Cross, to the Hilandar monastery in Vatopedi.
Kurir.rs
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Author: delivery courier
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