Celebration of the Icon of the Mother of God ''The Burning Bush''

The icon of the Mother of God “The Burning Bush” has its own special place in Orthodoxy This icon is famous for amazing events Initially, the image on the icon was represented by the Mother of God in the center of a burning bush and the prophet Moses kneeling before the plant However, after the 16th century, its image underwent changes, enriching it with various meanings, it became more saturated, bright, and new signs of faith were added to it: for example, initially there were no angels depicted on the shrine Many scientists are interested in the image of the bush from the point of view of physics and chemistry, and historians and experts in Orthodox culture from the point of view of events: after all, a lot of events are connected with the icon Scientists around the world have tried to explain the bush glow effect in terms of physical phenomena They believe that due to the large number of essential oils released (both from the fruits and flowers of the plant), the offered fire flares up near the bush and glows brightly for several seconds The oldest version of the image of the “Burning Bush” is located in Moscow, in the Annunciation Cathedral Monks from Palestine transferred the icon to the temple for permanent storage in 1390, but during the war with Napoleon the image was stolen and returned to the priests The soldier who stole the shrine suffered from attacks of unbearable melancholy, but after the icon was returned, his melancholy went away The second version of the icon, located in the Trinity Church in Slavyansk, is famous for the fact that this shrine saved the entire city from a fire in 1822 The houses burned one by one, and there was no time to put them out However, at night one of the residents had a vision that the fires would stop as soon as the icon was painted After painting the image of the Mother of God, the fires in the city stopped, and the culprit of all the misfortunes was found The significance of the icon of the “Burning Bush” for the entire Orthodox world is great: it protects all humanity, protects from misfortunes, and preserves the hearth It is this image of the Mother of God that is the patron saint of doctors, military personnel and firefighters - all those who are called upon to protect and save the lives of others In addition, Christians believe that the miraculous icon helps to heal the body from burns and the head from mental disorders Orthodox believe that the Burning Bush icon, as the protector of the home, should be hung directly above the front door of an apartment or house