Procession with icon of the Holy Virgin has started from Bachkovo Monastery

Hundreds of believers set off this morning from Bachkovo Monastery on the traditional procession to carry the icon of the Holy Virgin to the place where it was discovered centuries ago, BNR correspondent in Plovdiv Kremena Daneva has reported.

“There are many miracles associated with the icon and when tens of thousands of people gather then the Lord hears this prayer and pours out His grace upon us,” said Bishop Sionius, abbot of the Bachkovo Monastery. He added that he had repeatedly witnessed miracles related to the icon of the Holy Virgin, but the greatest miracle Christians is the miracle of the Resurrection.

The miraculous icon remained hidden for more than 160 years high in the mountains during the difficult years of the Ottoman invasion. A shepherd boy discovered it in the early 17th century, and since then it has been displayed in the monastery's church in a separate iconostasis. In front of the icon, believers pray for health and well-being.

Editor: Diana Tsankova