Threehands Theotokos again in Serbia

It is the great joy of Belgrade citizens and of the whole Serbian people that on Saturday June 7, came the gift from Holy Mount Athos which, through its double gathering in Carea decided to give the honor of its great attention and blessing.

Holy Mount Athos is a monastic state under the patronage and protection of the Mother of God herself, the Holy Mother of God. According to the tradition of our holy Fathers, the Most Holy Mother of God stayed, after Ephesus and the island of Pathmos, on the Mount Athos. Estimating that visit from the oldest times, the East Roman Empire rule or as it was wrongly called Byzantium in the 19th century, respected the "vow" of the Mother of God for that peninsula on Chalkidice to be the homeland of those who will make a vow to live in the maidenhood as she herself had lived.

Very early, as in the time of the Holy Tsar Constantine, the monasticism became alive on Holy Mount Athos. The monasteries of Konstaonit and Iviron remind us of that by the stay of the Most Holy Mother of God on the Mount Athos, which, because of the holy monastic-virtual achievement of the last citizens of the Mount Athos, rightly changed its name into Holy Mount Athos. Estimating the extraordinary representation of the Most Holy Mother of God before the throne of the Almighty by those who decided on for the great achievement of monasticism - the monks chose Her as their protector and patron. That is why the Most Holy Mother of God is, as nowhere else in the world, celebrated and respected in Holy Mount Athos in the orthodox way. We stress this particularly and with the reason since there are many false and misusable celebrations of the Most Holy Mother of God. In Mount Athos there are holy miraculous icons of the Most Holy Mother of God which confirmed many times and in different ways their miraculosness and the power of the prayer of holy monks. One of those holy icons is also the icon of the Mother of God Threehands Theotokos which is kept in the Serbian Monastery Chilandar.

The icon of the Mother of God Threehands Theotokos is one of the greatest spiritual treasures of Holy Mount Athos. It was described by St John of Damascus, the great name of the orthodox theologian thought, poetry and icon painting. During the time of icon fighting heretics he, with the word, oral and written, defended the truth and real faith regarding veneration of icons both of the very Holy Trinity, the Most Holy Mother of God and of the Holy God's people. For that he was severely punished by the East Roman Tsar Leo V. He ordered that his right hand be cut off so he would not be able to write books and speeches in the defense of the icons. St John of Damascus prayed before the icon of the Mother of God and, see a miracle - at once the hand of his right arm was linked with its corresponding part of the arm and became one as it was before. Then St John of Damascus decided to add by painting to the icon before which he used to pray and before which till then the unseen miracle happened, one more, the third arm. That is how it got the name "Threehands Theotokos". From then till today she does not stop to perform many miracles among the nations.

When Serbian St Sabba visited the Holy Land and came to the Monastery of St Sabba - the Sanctified, big gifts were given. Among the rest, St Sava also got as a present the icon Threehands Theotokos to take it to Serbia - as the present to the faithful orthodox Serbian people. St Sabba brought the icon Threehands Theotokos and was greatly respected by the Serbian people. But, as the Serbian people fell into sin and upon the allowance from God into the slavery of Turks, for their repentance, the icon of the Mother of God Threehands Theotokos in a miraculous way disappeared from the Serbian country and one morning was found placed as the burden on one packsaddled doneky in front of the monastery Chilandar. Big and unusual light showed the coming of the miraculous icon in front of the gate of the monastery Hilandar. The monks, having seen that light, processionally went to the place and saw the miracle: the icon of the Most Holy Mother of God on the packsaddled donkey. They came closer, took the icon down, bowed down and processionally took it to the monastery Chilandar and placed it on the special place in front of the prior throne where it rests even today. It happened five centuries ago.

The history looks as it has been repeated.

As before so many centuries, when the Serbian people were in unenviable international position as now, God visits us in a miraculous way. Then it was through St Sabba, and now it is through his followers from Mount Athos. Mount Athos visits us through its representatives, 30 monks who bring to us the icon of the Most Holy Mother of God Threehands Theotokos, its copy which the whole Mount Athos offers to the prayerful and thankful togetherness with Serbian people. Handing over the icon to the Serbian Patriarch, archimandrite Jefrem delivers a speech: "Today is the historical moment because the protector of Chilandar comes as the blessing for the Serbian people. This icon arrives at Serbia to finish the deed started several centuries ago when it was brought here by St Sabba from Jerusalem, to strengthen the orthodox Christians in the religion and to change the non-believers."

The people from Mount Athos followed with great pain the "Golgotha" of the Serbian people during the past years. Day and night they used to pray before the icons of the Most Holy Mother of God for the salvation of the Serbian people and not only for the Serbian, but for the whole mankind which found itself in the whirlpool of dreadful demoniac traps and temptations. That is why the coming of the copy of the icon of the Most Holy Mother of God Threehands Theotokos to our tormented homeland is not only the expression of the love of Mount Athos towards the Golgothal suffering of the Serbian people, but it is the great historical moment for the entire Serbian nation.