The Greek word Eleusa, which translates as mercy or compassion also refers to a type of icon of the Mother of God, which people also call "affectionate" or "tender". It is one of the most common types in the Russian tradition. Icons typically depict the Christ Child pressing his cheek against His mother in a truly endearing scene. Both represent a single whole, and the indivisibility of their wholeness carries the message of their infinite love for humanity.
Once in a church store, I was looking for an icon I liked which I knew was called Eleusa. Imagine my surprise when the assistant presented me with a selection of icons, each bearing this lovely name. Today, the Church commemorates one of them, the Tenderness Icon of the Mother of God of the Pskov Caves.
It first appeared in 1521 at the Monastery of the Holy Dormition, now in the town of Pechory in the Pskov Region. The original had been copied from the Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God by Hieromonk Arseny (Khitrosh). Two grateful merchants of Pskov named Vasily and Fedor donated the icon to the monastery, of which the Venerable Cornelius was then the abbot.
Holy Dormition Pskovo-Caves Monastery
On the icon's feast day, revered monastic elder Father John Krestyankin remarked, "The miracles of the Mother of God are truly innumerable." If we turn to Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker and trust in an endless sea of miracles, how endless must the wonders of the Most Pure Theotokos be? It must be an ocean of marvels.”
Father John Krestyankin
He could not have articulated any better than this. The first miracles attributed to the icon reportedly occurred in 1524. "The Mother of God grants healing not only to the Orthodox but also to those of other faiths, including the inhabitants of Latin and German lands, who come with faith before the Most Pure Mother of God and Her miracle-working image," wrote the chroniclers of the time.
The Mother of God intervened in 1581 on behalf of the people of Pskov. The army of Poland's King Stephan Batorius had invaded Northwest Russia. The monks of the Kiev Caves delivered the icon to the city to reassure its citizens. Pskov remained under siege for five months. The invaders attempted to attack the Pskov Kremlin thirty times before being repulsed. Historians hold that if the Polish soldiers had captured Pskov, they would not have stopped there but would have continued to Novgorod and Moscow. Thus, the intercession of the Mother of God was a tremendous mercy for all of Russia.
The event deepened people's love for the Theotokos' holy image, and the Russian Tsar Fedor Ioannovich, son of Ivan the Terrible, had it adorned with rubies, pearls and diamonds.
Tsar Fedor Ioannovich
Almost two and a half centuries later, the people of Pskov and its surrounding areas once again experienced the power of prayer before the miracle-working icon of the Mother of God of Pskov. Another enemy entered Russian land from the West under the command of the mighty Napoleon. Danger loomed large, and once again, the Mother of God offered Her merciful protection, hearing the pleas of the faithful.
In the Autumn of 1812, Napoleon attacked Polotsk in Belarus, and he had plans to press on to Pskov. The faithful went on a procession of the cross across the streets of Pskov, carrying icons, including the Tenderness Image of the Mother of God. A miracle happened: the Russian army repelled the French from Polotsk, eliminating the threat to Pskov.
The icon's feast day is observed on October 7 (20) to honour the city's miraculous deliverance from the French. For many years and decades, worshippers carried the miracle-working Virgin of the Tenderness icon in the processions of the Cross. They began in the early September and continued until the feast day.
Some years, believers travelled as far as Riga with the image. For most of the 20th century, the processions stopped, and did not resume until 1997. Today, they go between the Church of the Dormition and the Church of St. Michael in the Pskov Caves monastery. Incidentally, the Church of Saint Michael was built in honour of Pskov's remarkable deliverance from the soldiers of Napoleon. It was in this church that the Eleusa icon was placed at the right Kliros.
Procession of the Cross with miracle-working icons, Pskov Caves Monastery
Its miracles have been innumerable, and it is commemorated five times during the church year, on 21 May/3 June, 23 June/6 July, 26 August/8 September and on the seventh Sunday after Pascha.
According to a long-standing tradition, believers have prayed before this icon to find healing from blindness. One known miracle occurred to Maria Terentyeva, a resident of Podkoporye across the River Neva. She had been blind for three years. Still, she was not losing hope. One day, she came to the Pskov Caves Monastery to pray before the Eleusa Icon. Immediately, she recovered her vision. The same miracle happened to Potapy Grigoryev, who suffered in darkness for six years, but saw light after a prayer in 1603.
The Mother of God, whom we call the fast helper, protectress of sufferers and joy of the sorrowful, is quick to hear our pleas and answer them - as long as they come deep from our hearts.
By Lubov Lutsevich
