Memorial Day of the Vilna Icon of the Mother of God

Every year on February 28, all Orthodox people celebrate in memory of the Vilna Icon of the Mother of God, painted by St. Luke. For a long time, the icon served as a family shrine of the Greek rulers reigning in the territory of Constantinople. The image earned fame thanks to its healing of the sick. Prayers were read before him, aimed at getting rid of serious illnesses. In the fall of 1472, Zoya Paleologus arrived in the Russian capital from Rome, taking the name Sophia immediately after the wedding procedure with the Moscow Prince Ivan. According to legend, it was she who transported the image to Moscow. A few years later, John III blessed his daughter Elena with this icon, who became engaged to Prince Alexander, who arrived from Lithuania. Subsequently, the shrine was moved to the Lithuanian capital Vilna, now Vilnius, where it received its name - Vilna. After the death of Elena, the icon was exhibited in the local cathedral, above the coffin of the deceased. When family relations with Moscow were weakened, Russian rulers repeatedly tried to return the image to their native land. This happened for the first time in 1569 during the Livonian military operations. Ivan the Terrible offered Tsar Sigismund 50 Lithuanian prisoners belonging to noble families for him. However, the king responded with a decisive refusal, since all the clergy did not want to lose this treasure. The next attempt to return the holy image to its homeland took place in 1655. After the fall of Vilna as a result of an attack by the army of ruler Alexei Mikhailovich, he ordered that all possible efforts be made to find and bring the shrine home. However, at that time the image had already been taken to the Koenigsberg monastery. After some period of time, the icon returned to Vilna, where it remained in the Prechistensky Cathedral until the mid-18th century. Later she was transported to the Holy Trinity Monastery. At that time it was Catholic property. The Prechistensky Cathedral became the property of the Uniates. Only in 1839 was it possible to return the monastery, along with the image, to the Orthodox community. From that moment on, the icon became a replacement for the Mother of God, called Ostrobramskaya. During the First World War, due to the risk of Lithuania being captured by German soldiers, Archbishop Tikhon, the future Patriarch of Russia, advised that all Orthodox icons, in particular the Vilna Icon, be returned to their homeland. In 1915 the shrine was delivered to the Donskoy Church. A few years later she disappeared without a trace under unclear circumstances. Until now, it has not been possible to find out its current location.