THE PALLADIUM OF THE HOLY MONASTERY
“The Lady the Faneromeni” The miraculous guardian patron, portable, silver-plated icon of the Holy Monastery of the All-Holy Virgin Faneromeni, 1874. First english edition © Holy Metropolis of Ierapetra and Siteia Texts – Edition: Archimandrite Kyrillos Diamantakis, Chancellor of the Holy Metropolis of Ierapetra and Siteia English Translation and Edition: Maria Kouroumali Photos: Deacon Amvrosios Skarvelis
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PROLOGUE
As the pilgrim enters the boundaries of the Holy Metropolis of Ierapetra and Siteia, after the village of Kalo Chorio and before the archaeological site of the Minoan city of Gournies, he gazes at the historic and glorious Holy Monastery of the All-Holy Virgin Faneromeni of Ierapetra. Nestled upon the rock with the cavernous impressive church and the fortress-like features with the conspicuous embrasures, the entire monastic complex is reminiscent of a weapons emplacement of the spirit. The constant attacks of the Saracens and of the other conquerors remind us of the continuous defence of the monks against exterior dangers. At the same time though, they confirm that they are battling constantly, as holy trustees of our unblemished Orthodox faith, to keep its bulwarks, the Monasteries, alive. The Monk struggles daily to hold the fort of his soul upright and to have inner peace and balance in order to spread the sense of the living presence of the eternal and true God, of our All-Holy Virgin, of the Saints, of the Holy Fathers and Ascetics, to all the pilgrims. The Monastery of the All-Holy Virgin Faneromeni began as a hermitage. “Countless ascetics have passed through here. Oh, if only you could see them!� the blessed Elder Porphyrios of Kafsokalyvia, who reposed in 1991, used to say. This is confirmed by the cavernous church of the Monastery, but also by the many caves which exist in the surrounding area, 2
where the saints and ascetics lived in fasting, vigils, and prayer and have left us the holiness of their life as a sacred trust. The faithful who visit the Holy Monastery feel this fragrance of holiness and the spiritual uplifting. The natural elevation lifts you high up to the sky, to a place of spiritual transcendence and ascent far away from the earthly and daily cares. The pilgrims become aware and benefit spiritually from their pilgrimage. The Fathers welcome them cordially and with genuine love and help them to communicate with God, our All-Holy Virgin, and their fellow humans. As we write the prologue to this brief pilgrimage guide, we hope, paternally, that each pilgrim, who comes to this historic Monastery and invokes the Maternal mediations of the Guardian and Patron, of our All-Holy Virgin Faneromeni with faith and piety, will experience in his heart the inexpressible spiritual joy, and, wholeheartedly, we bless the effort of renovation and manning of this sacred and historic place, which – since the 12th century – maintains the flame of faith unquenched and the witness of the spirit alive. “Seek the things above, desire the things above and not the things of the earth” (Col. 3, 1-2). The hostess Lady Theotokos and ever-virgin Mary invites us all to a spiritual feast and generously repays the toil and sweat of every anonymous and known pilgrim. Ierapetra 2011 With paternal blessings
+ Metropolitan Evgenios of Ierapetra and Siteia 3
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HOLY MONASTERY OF THE ALL-HOLY VIRGIN FANEROMENI OF IERAPETRA
FOUNDATION AND LOCATION OF THE MONASTERY The Holy Monastery of the All-Holy Virgin Faneromeni of Ierapetra, also known as “the All-Holy Virgin of Gournies,” is located to the southwest of Pachia Ammos of the Municipality of Ierapetra and above the Minoan city of Gournia, built on an elevation of 540 metres on the slope of a mountain branch of Diktys. The city of Agios Nikolaos and the beautiful bay of Merambellou with its picturesque coasts and its islets can be seen from the Monastery in panoramic view. There is no dedicatory or other inscription with the exact date of the foundation of the Monastery. Only more recent inscriptions are preserved, which refer to building work that took place in the 19th century, although the present building complex, according to its architecture, is probably a construction of the 16th century, a period of frequent predatory raids by the Turks on the north coast of Crete. The exact year of the foundation of the Monastery is not known. However, according to all the historical sources and the chronological indicators, the Monastery may have been founded during the middle Byzantine period (961–1204), namely earlier than the conquest of Crete by the Venetians in the year 1211. The Catholicon of the Monastery has been built inside the cavity of an overhanging large rock, in a cave, is entirely decorated with icons, and is dedicated to the Dormition of the Theotokos and the Zoodochos Pigi (Life-giving Spring). The sanctuary communicates with another cave. Water gathers there from capillary surfaces, which the faithful receive as holy water (agiasma). According to tradition, inside the cavernous church of the Catholicon of the Monastery, the icon of the Theotokos was revealed to a shepherd and this is why the Monastery was named All-Holy Virgin Faneromeni (She who is Revealed). Specifically, 4
Τhe entrance of the Monastery.
this shepherd lost his guide, the leader of his herd, every day around noon. One day, he decided to leave his herd and observe the ram that went to a broken rock, from where a little water flowed, and drank. He approached and there found the icon of the Theotokos. When, however, he took it with him and placed it in his sack in order to bring it back to the sheepfold, the icon disappeared. The next day the shepherd came back to the same place and found the icon again. This was repeated several times until the shepherd was certain that the icon always returned to the place it was found; for this reason, he left it in its place where, gradually, the Monastery was built. The icon itself, at certain times, especially during the fifteen days of the fast in August (in honour of the Dormition) and the other Marian feasts, reappears to the faithful and, in a mysterious way, vanishes again. Aside from a sacred shrine and a religious boast of the whole of Eastern Crete, the monastery is also a historic place where the Cretan revolutionaries found refuge and reinforcement in the difficult years of the Venetian and Turkish subjugation. The fortified location and the fortress-like form of the Monastery amply prove its defensive character. Indeed, battlements and embrasures still survive in the areas of the fortress complex of the Monastery, as they do in most of the monasteries which were built during the same period. 5
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THE ASSEMBLY OF 1293
From the beginning, at least, of the 13th century, the Monastery became the reverential shrine, the miraculous refuge, and the protection of the persecuted Christians of the region and of all of Crete. It was the remote secret location of revolutionary assemblies, over which the invisible presence of the Lady Theotokos Faneromeni sat and presided. According to the narrative described by V. Psillakis in his history, after the victorious Genovese, Piscatore, conquered Crete in 1204 and sold it to the Venetians in 1211, the Cretans rallied around Alexios Kallergis and in the year 1282 revolted against the Venetians. Even though all facts pointed to the revolutionaries defeating the conquerors, the Genoese offered Kallergis considerable support through Admiral Doria without demanding anything in return. However, Alexios refused, there was agitation among the revolutionary leaders and the unity, which was necessary under the circumstances, was seriously damaged. Factions were created and half supported submission to the Genoese, the other half agreed with Kallergis, while some deputy commanders began to leave his army. Within this atmosphere, the Abbot of the Monastery of Faneromeni of Ierapetra invited all the divided military commanders to the church of the Monastery on Palm Sunday of 1293. After they had received the Holy Eucharist, he closed the church with all of them inside and transformed it into a parliament with him as president. Intense disputes and quarrels took place and the rebelling people entered the church holding the banner of the Byzantine Emperor, Andronikos Palaiologos. The commanders left and only seven from the rural territories remained. After a while, they exited the church, chanting the victory hymn with branches 6
and laurel leaves, swore fealty and submission to Andronikos, and cheered him. The Abbot blessed the banner and they placed it next to Christ Crucified. This chronicle, regardless of the outcome of the Assembly (the revolutionaries, unfortunately, were divided into five different parties), is witness to the fact that the Monastery is the oldest one of Eastern Crete and played a coordinating role in critical occasions for the nation.
Portable icon of the Theotokos.
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THE PERIOD OF TURKISH OCCUPATION The Monastery, due to its strategic location on an inaccessible slope and in a place where it dominates, was the fortress and the base of the fighter Christian Revolutionaries of the province against the many years of Turkish yoke. It was directly linked with the hard and difficult liberation struggles and became the hiding place and the base of the chieftain fighters and their place of assembly, in which decisions of historical import were taken. The hole above the lintel of the central entrance, known as a “scalding hole,” from where boiling oil was poured down upon the enemies that tried to break into the area of the Monastery, is indicative of its defensive character. When the Monastery was surrounded by the conquerors, the small cave to the southwest of the cavernous church of the Transfiguration of the Saviour, which is the cemetery church of the Monastery, connected the Monastery with the outside world and was used for the supply and exit of the fighters. The national offering of the Monastery of Faneromeni or “Gourniotissa” was immense during the difficult years of the Turkish occupation and acted as a bastion for the fighters of the Cretan revolutions. Indeed, it also financially reinforced the various revolutions against the Turks, as did all the other Monasteries of Crete. Many Christians who believed in the Greek revolution and had seen the help and protection of the All-Holy Virgin clearly – such as the famous chieftain of Kato Chorio of Ierapetra, Fragios Tsantirakis or Papadakis, who had found sanctuary in the Monastery of Faneromeni many times – dedicated fields, mainly, to the Monastery in an effort to strengthen the struggle for freedom financially. The inconspicuous but admirable cooperation of Monastery and revolutionaries is also witnessed by the letter of the
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View of the elaborate wood-carved altar screen of the Catholicon.
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Abbot Neophytos in 1878 to the military commander Emmanuel Lakerdas from Anatoli, with which he asked for the protection of the Monastery of Faneromeni from the depredations and raids of the Turks. Moreover, the treasury of the Monastery always contributed respectable sums of money to charitable causes, such as education, the preservation of various shops, and others. The monastery was renovated, began to be organised and to be known in 1839, when Chatzi-Gerasimos became Abbot. The active Gerasimos gave the cavernous Church the form it has today and furnished it with altar screens and icons. He attracted pilgrims, who dedicated various valuables and estates to the Monastery, purchased lands, and laid the foundation for its economic development.
View of the cave where the icon of the All-Holy Virgin Faneromeni was revealed.
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THE SECRET SCHOOL AND THE HEROINE RODANTHI KRITSOTOPOULOU
The monks of the Holy Monastery of Faneromeni taught reading and writing, not only to the youth who had found refuge in the Monastery, but also to the children of the surrounding villages. Even though the Turkish conquerors had forbidden the operation of schools, hoping that in this way the flame of revolution would be quenched, the first Secret School of Crete operated in the Holy Monastery of Faneromeni. In it, the priest – teacher, during the dismal years of Turkish occupation, fomented the flame of faith for religion and country in the souls of the Greek children, increased the desire for freedom, and solidified the decision of the struggle for national resistance. In the Monastery of Faneromeni, under the sweet light of the oil or vigil lamp, the Christian children learned about Alexander the Great, the marble king, and about the ancient glory of Hellenism, alongside ecclesiastical letters. In this workshop of faith and patriotism, they learned – apart from the basic letters – that way which would help them to sanctify their thoughts, their feelings and their inner character, and the means which would lead them effectively to overthrow the Turkish yoke and to the resurrection of our nation. There, the national conscience and the faith for God were renewed, the militant spirit of the enslaved Cretans was reinforced and revived, and their desire for the freedom of the nation was increased. The room, in which the Secret School operated, is located to the southwest of the Monastery and to the right of its central entrance and courtyard. This is a room with a large mezzanine level incorporated in the entire building complex of the Monastery, with small, combat-ready windows, as the conditions of the period in which it was built demanded. The legendary Rodanthi, the Kritsotopoula, the daughter of the Protopappas (senior priest) of Kritsa, who later became the “chief 11
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The entrance of the area in which the Secret School operated.
bodyguard” of the chieftain Kazanomanolis, studied in this school. At the age of only five years old she was brought by her father in secret to the Monastery of Faneromeni, where, under the scant light offered by the flame of the humble vigil lamp, the education “in the ways and admonitions of the Lord” that her pious parents had given her was completed and she dedicated herself completely to the eternal ideals of the Orthodox faith and country. Rodanthi, this wonderful and inspired Cretan young woman, had the Monastery of Faneromeni as her school of piety and patriotism, with the help and protection of which she realised unsurpassable actions of superb heroism and self-sacrifice, achievements which revived the morale of the enslaved Cretans and brought fear and awe to the Turkish conquerors. This heroine, after killing Hursit Aga in the village of Choumeriako in Merambellou because he contrived against her honour, disguised as a man and under the pseudonym of “Spanomanolis” (meaning ‘beardless Manolis’) enlisted in the army of Captain Kazanis and was a terrible scourge for the Turks of the area. Finally, she died fighting in the battle of Kontaratos in 1823. 12
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THE DEDICATIONS TO THE MONASTERY AND THE MODERN PERIOD
“The Life-giving Spring,� portable icon of altar screen, 1843.
In the documents that are related to the financial situation of the Monastery (dedicatory documents, bills of sale, and fergatia) the vivid piety of our ancestors is witnessed, not only of the surrounding villages, but also of the inhabitants outside the province of Ierapetra, which was expressed through works of a pious disposition. At the same time, the Monastery also played a protective role for the properties of many Christians, who dedicated all of their property, or a part of it, to the monastery in order to save them from Turkish oppression. And the dedication of lands to the Monastery in memory, and for the forgiveness of sins, of parents, who had passed away, was moving. 13
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Panoramic view of the Monastery.
For the Turks found various reasons to deprive the enslaved Greek from his lands, unless they were dedicated to a charitable foundation, namely they became “vakifs,� in which case, they were rescued. From these donations of the Christians, the Monastery had acquired a large rural estate during the period of the Turkish occupation and it had as dependencies the Holy Monasteries of Armos, Exakousti, and Kayrdiani of Ierapetra. Indeed, its large estate was the cause of an intense litigation with the Turkish agas of Ierapetra, the Tsagalides, who had neighbouring estates and tried to grab the contiguous lands of the Monastery, which was forced to resort to legal battles in order to preserve its properties. During the census of 1893, the Monastery had in its ownership the area which extended to the sea (around ten thousand acres), four dependencies (Pyrovolous, Assari, Achlada, Vrygiomenou) and scattered fields which were to be found in 239 different locations of the provinces of Ierapetra, Merambellou and Siteia. 14
“The Dormition of the Theotokos.” Portable icon from altar screen.
However, the Fund of the Reserve Fighters of Crete, according to law 3345 of 22nd June 1925, took the three fifths of the Monastery’s estate for the relief and restitution of the poor families of the reserve fighters of the Asia Minor campaign while considerable lands were sold by the Management Agency of Monastic Property of the county of Lasithi. In 1881, the Monastery had seven Monks, while in 1901, after the remaining monasteries of Ierapetra were considered dissolvable (Exakousti and Karydiani), it numbered nineteen Monks. The Constitution Law 276 of 1900 of the Orthodox Church pronounced the Monastery of Faneromeni soluble. With Law 553 of 1903 the Monastery was reconstituted, while with a new decree of 8th July 1930, the Monastery was deemed soluble again. With the Law of 24th October 1935 it was preserved and, finally, with Law 4149/1961 “On the Charter of the Orthodox Church in Crete,” the Monastery was deemed to be a historic grade-listed building complex and active, thereby continuing to 15
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“The Life-giving Spring.” Representation in relief – covering of silver Gospel, Holy Monastery of Faneromeni, gift of the Bishop of Ierositeia, Hilarion, 1866.
write its history until the present day, faithful to its heavy and long-standing tradition. During the German-Italian occupation of 1941–1944 many persecuted and resistance patriots found refuge and had the Monastery as their base. The Fathers and the shepherds of Faneromeni hid the men of the Allied Forces in the caves of the surrounding area, offered them asylum, and helped them escape to Egypt.
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“The Dormition of the Theotokos.� Representation in relief – covering of silver Gospel, Holy Monastery of Faneromeni, gift of the Bishop of Ierositeia, Hilarion, 1866.
Two monks live in the Monastery today, and, under the wise guidance and the undivided care and paternal affection of His Eminence, Metropolitan of Ierapetra and Siteia, Evgenios, maintain the rich and heavy tradition they have inherited, serving the Divine Liturgy daily according to the Byzantine typikon. The entire renovation and restoration of this historic Monastery, without altering its architectural character and form, is the vision of a lifetime.
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THE FEAST OF THE DORMITION
Vespers of the feast of the Dormition, 14 August 2011.
The historic Monastery of Faneromeni celebrates the feast of the Dormition of the Theotokos on August 15. A multitude of faithful inundates the Monastery annually, especially during the actual day of the feast. The All-Holy Virgin Faneromeni is miraculous and, therefore, is famous throughout Crete and particularly in the County of Lasithi and the provinces of Pediada and Viannos of the County of Heraklion. Thus, in August, which is the month of the All-Holy Virgin and dedicated to Her, the Monastery is one of the biggest pilgrimage sites of Eastern Crete. A large number of people flock to it daily, tired, and exhausted from the trials and the conditions of life so that they can deposit their inner problems in front of Her miraculous icon. Many patients seek to be healed. Others climb up to the monastery on foot to fulfil their vow; black-clad and bare-foot 18
mothers lift their babies and offer them to the Mother of the whole world; others come in order to beg the Mistress of the world, with tears in their eyes, to fulfil one of their desires; many to thank and glorify the Queen and Lady of all for Her benefactions, chanting: “No one who resorts to you, proceeds from you ashamed, o pure virgin Mother of God…” Apart from the numerous pilgrims who gather from many areas of the island to revere the miraculous icon in the other-worldly, remote, devout, and grace-filled cavernous church, faithful of all ages are hosted in the areas of the Monastery during the fifteen days of August. They – continuing an ancient tradition – come to the Monastery and spend the first fifteen days of August in the renovated guesthouse with fasting and prayer, participate in the daily Divine Liturgies, the Vespers, Invocations, and Compline Services and, in this way, fulfil one of their vows. The feast of the All-Holy Virgin in the Monastery has something unique. The faithful, continuing the tradition of many generations, come up with reverence and humility, with spirituality and faith, to pray to the Lady Faneromeni and to communicate with God genuinely. And the All-Holy Virgin the Faneromeni rewards them with the sacred things effected in Her house and offers them spiritual relief and peace so that they may continue on the road of life. Because the faithful person can place his hopes and longings only upon the All-Holy Virgin Mother with certainty and faith and can seek Her mighty shelter and protection, chanting: “Upon you I lay my every hope, Mother of God, protect me under Your shelter.”
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“The Dormition of the Theotokos.” Portable icon from altar screen, by the hand of John Nikolaides, 1843.
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MIRACULOUS EVENTS AND HEALINGS
The miracles which take place in the Monastery are many, as the faithful, who have seen with their eyes the grace of God acting by healing some physical or mental illness of theirs through the mediation of the All-Holy Virgin, the Lady Faneromeni, confirm at times. Also proof of the miracles and benefactions, which the Faneromeni generously gives to the Christians, are the countless votive offerings – oblations that are offered by the beneficiaries and healed faithful and which are suspended in front of Her holy miraculous icon. Indicatively, we quote some miracles. 1) It is mentioned that in the difficult mid-war years (Second World War), a mother from Ierapetra, who already had three children, gave birth to another one. Unfortunately, her fourth child, while it was born healthy, became entirely paralysed after it froze as it remained exposed to the cold, in the area of Assaris where they dwelt. It was about four years old. She could not raise it because of the great economic distress, and she decided to surrender it to the Monastery of Faneromeni. Therefore, at night, she came up to the Monastery on foot and left the child outside the door. “Let the All-Holy Virgin take it and either She will heal it or let Her take it with Her,” she thought. The next day the Monks found the child outside the gate of the Monastery. They decided to surrender it to the Constabulary, when they came down from the Monastery. However, at night, the Abbot of the Monastery saw in his sleep the All-Holy Virgin telling him: “In the morning, take the child you found outside the door and go and bury it in the sand, on the beach.” The next day the Abbot mentioned to the Fathers of the Monastery the strange dream he had seen. 21
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The Brothers wondered. They perhaps felt that this was a message of the All-Holy Virgin but they were hesitant, though, to do what she asked. The next evening the Abbot saw the AllHoly Virgin again and she repeated the same words she had told him the previous night with intensity. In the morning, after the service, the Elder announced the reappearance of the All-Holy Virgin to the Fathers of the Monastery and her command to bury the child in the sand. Again the Brothers refused to do it. For the third night again, the All-Holy Virgin appeared to the Abbot in his sleep and, intensely, commanded him to do what she ordered, otherwise a great evil would come upon them. The next morning, the Fathers of the Monastery, since they had now been convinced that this was the order of the All-Holy Virgin to bury the child in the sand, placed it upon a sheet, came down to the beach and did what She had commanded. They buried the child in the sand and only allowed its little head to be seen above the sand. They left for the Monastery with great hesitation and bewilderment as to what would follow. In the afternoon, all the Fathers together, chanted an Invocation to the All-Holy Virgin, and the next day served the Divine Liturgy, to beg the Lady Faneromeni to reveal Her plan to them immediately. The third day, a villager came up to the Monastery, holding a child in his arms. It was the one the Fathers had buried at the beach. He told them that he had heard it shout as he was passing by the beach, took it in his arms and brought it to the Monastery because the child itself had told him that it wished to be brought up to the Monastery. The All-Holy Virgin had healed it completely! 2) Many are the couples who come to pray to the grace-flowing icon of the All-Holy Virgin the Faneromeni in order for Her to help them have a child. Many parents come to the Monastery to thank her for the child she made them worthy to give birth to and dedicate it to Her grace giving it Her name, Maria, Marios, Panagiotis, Despina, Faneromeni, Faneros, and others, or also 22
baptising it in Her devout and cavernous Church, but also to receive the blessing of the Forty days at the Monastery. a) Thirty-five years ago, a woman from Heraklion came, who had a great desire to bear a child. She begged the Nun Filothei of blessed memory, who was then serving at the monastery, to accompany her to the Church at night and to serve an Invocation to the Veneration of the faithful All-Holy Virgin. Indeed, during the Feast of the Dormition. just before midnight, they went to the Church, served the Invocation and, when the service ended, the Nun gave the woman a little piece from the wick of the vigil lamp of the All-Holy Virgin. “After you have fasted, eat it before you eat anything,” she told her. After some time, the woman gave birth to a healthy baby boy. The doctor coming out of the delivery room asked the woman: “Did you give birth to this child through a miracle?” “Yes, through a miracle. Why do you ask?” said the mother. “Because I can see this mark on the foot of the baby.” Then, the mother, surprised, saw a tiny mark, like “a scab”, on the ankle of the baby. This tiny mark was exactly the shape and size of the wick which she had eaten from the vigil lamp of the All-Holy Virgin! This mark remained on the foot of the child for several years. b) A couple from Chania was trying to have a baby for twelve years. They made many efforts and also sought help from 23
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medical science (medical assistance), but with no result. They were disappointed. For the last time they were going to attempt conception using in vitro fertilisation. A few days before they were due to go for the procedure, the woman saw a black-clad young woman standing high upon a steep rock, holding a baby in her arms. “This baby I’m holding will be yours if you come and venerate me,” she told her. “Who are you?” asked the woman. “The All-Holy Virgin the Faneromeni,” replied the All-Holy Virgin and disappeared. The next morning, the woman told her husband about the dream she had seen the previous evening and begged him to find out where there is a Church or Monastery, dedicated to the AllHoly Virgin the Faneromeni, so that they could go and venerate. Her husband, in disbelief, reassured her telling her he would ask to find out where there was such a Monastery for them to visit. He did not believe what his wife told him and, in a few days, the event of the appearance of the All-Holy Virgin had been forgotten. A few evenings later, the black-clad All-Holy Virgin reappeared to the woman and told her for the second time: “Come and venerate me, and the baby I hold will be yours.” The next day, the woman asked her husband again, in tears, for them to search and find out where there is a Church or Monastery of the All-Holy Virgin Faneromeni so that they could go and venerate. Again, her husband did not pay particular attention and tried to reassure her. On the eve of the procedure the All-Holy Virgin appeared for the third time to the woman in her sleep and, intensely and sharply, told her: “Come and venerate me and the baby I hold will be yours, otherwise I will let it go from my hands and you will never have a child!” The woman, troubled, woke up and, sobbing, asked her husband to go and venerate the All-Holy Virgin Faneromeni. “Let’s go to the doctor, have the procedure and I give you my word that the next day, immediately, we will find out where there is the church of the Faneromeni and we will go and venerate,” he replied. 24
Feast 2010, Vespers.
Thus it happened. They went to the clinic for the in vitro procedure, but the woman did not want to proceed with the preparation for it. The doctor, who saw that she was very anxious and stressed, was hesitant to begin. “Let her go and venerate the All-Holy Virgin, let her calm down and then come back so we can move forward. After all, in her condition currently, there is nothing we can do,� he advised the husband. Indeed, the next day they asked and they were told about the Monastery of the All-Holy Virgin Faneromeni in Ierapetra. They came with reverence. It was the year 2000. They climbed the steep steps and found themselves outside the cavernous Church of the All-Holy Virgin. Tears of emotion and wonder ran from the eyes of the woman. The precipitous rocks and the surrounding area outside the Church was exactly the same spot in which she had seen, three times in her dream, the black-clad All-Holy Virgin, holding the babe in her maternal embrace! She knelt in front of the icon of the All-Holy Virgin in awe, venerated with sobs and they left the Monastery. 25
HOLY MONASTERY OF THE ALL-HOLY VIRGIN FANEROMENI OF IERAPETRA
After a few days, the couple went to the clinic again to be examined by the doctor. After a while, the gynecologist announced that there was no need to attempt medical assistance in order to conceive a child. The woman was pregnant! She was right not to want the procedure to begin a few days ago. If she had accepted, she would have lost the child she was already carrying as she was already in the sixth week of pregnancy! They baptised the little girl she gave birth to at the Monastery and they gave her the name “Faneromeni.� 3) A few years ago, a mother and her son, who had a mole next to his eye since he was a child, came to the Monastery from the village of Anatoli in Ierapetra. The mole grew over the years and festered. It often dripped pus and blood. He had to have an operation to remove it. When they came to the Monastery, they took some oil from the vigil lamp of the All-Holy Virgin and anointed the mole daily. In a few days it had entirely disappeared! 4) When, recently, in 1999, the new national highway was being opened, exactly underneath the Monastery, a huge rock crushed an excavator, also trapping its operator for a while. As soon as the operator was rescued, a part of the mountain, where the work was being carried out, collapsed and buried the excavator entirely without, however, endangering the operator, or any of the other workers who were close by! 5) On Easter day 2006, a soldier who was serving his military term at the air base of Ziros in Siteia came to venerate the AllHoly Virgin. Leaving the Monastery, he lost control of his car and it tumbled, falling off a precipice and landing at a depth of around 150 metres. When the men of the fire brigade rescued him from the car and took him to the hospital by ambulance, they discovered that he only had some superficial abrasions. The young man survived intact through a miracle of the All-Holy Virgin while his car was completely destroyed! 26
6) In 1997, at the beginning of the fifteen days of the August fast, a group of pilgrims from Heraklion arrived very early in the morning at the Monastery. The family had the devout habit of climbing up to the Monastery on foot during the fifteen days of August over ten years. They set out all together from Heraklion, the parents, the children, the uncles and cousins, and they came to Faneromeni on foot! Their walk took about two days. When we asked them to which miraculous event of the All-Holy Virgin was their vow due, they told us the following: They had a ten-year old daughter, who suffered from leukemia. The child was subjected to medical exams and treatment, with none of the expected results. In their disappointment and sorrow, someone told them about the Monastery of Faneromeni and of how the grace of the All-Holy Virgin was so miraculous. They came to the Monastery with their little girl, venerated the icon of the All-Holy Virgin, took some of the oil, and anointed their child. When they were leaving, both parents, without consulting each other, made the same vow: if the grace of the All-Holy Virgin helped their child to get better, they would come from their house on foot to the Monastery, as many years as their daughter was old, namely ten. With the next treatments they did, the results were very encouraging, and thus in a short while, the girl was completely cured! 7) A mother from a village of the Province of Merambellou came in the year 1947 with her – then – two year-old son to spend the fifteen days of the August fast at the Monastery. The child faced a serious problem since birth. He woke suddenly in the night with nightmares and screamed in terror. Then the poor mother 27
HOLY MONASTERY OF THE ALL-HOLY VIRGIN FANEROMENI OF IERAPETRA
vowed that she would come with her son to the All-Holy Virgin Faneromeni and they would stay for the fifteen days before the great feast of the Dormition. She believed strongly that only the grace of the Faneromeni could help her only child. Indeed, the child calmed down and was cured inside the Monastery, with the continuous participation in the daily Holy Services, the Divine Liturgies, the Vespers, the Invocations, and the Complines. The Lady Faneromeni cured it entirely and the child escaped from the terrible problem it faced. Since that time this devout woman, as an expression of gratitude to the All-Holy Virgin, came almost every year to the Monastery until her deep old age and spent the fifteen days of the August fast there, while her son became educated, was ordained to the priesthood and serves the Church of our Christ, worthily, until the present day.
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