Feast of the Icon of the Mother of God “Life-Giving Spring”

On Friday of Holy Week, the Russian Orthodox Church established the feast of the icon of the Mother of God “Life-Giving Spring”. In the Starocherkassk Army Cathedral of Christ’s Resurrection, the icon of the Virgin “Life-Giving Spring”, written specifically for the cathedral, is kept, dating from the XVIII century, as there is an inscription on the icon itself.

On May 10, 2024, on the occasion of the celebration in honor of the venerated image, the Divine Liturgy was head by the senior priest of the cathedral, archpriest Valery Voloshchuk. He was co-served by the dean of the Western District of Rostov-on-Don, priest Alexander Litvinenko, the dean of the Neklinovsky district, priest Sergiy Kropivnitsky, the senior priest of the St. Nicholas Church in Aksai Vladimir Chechanovsky, the senior priest of the St. Nicholas Church in the village of Vesely-Voznesenka Nikita Zhidkov, the clergy of the cathedral.

At the end of the liturgy, a water-blessing prayer service was performed in front of the ancient image of the Mother of God “Life-Giving Spring”.

During the closure of the cathedral in 20th century, many shrines were lost and looted. But the revered image was preserved by the pious Cossacks. At first, it was transfered to the Ascension Cathedral in Novocherkassk, where it was deeply revered, and in the recent period it was transferred to the newly opened church of the same name in the village of Petrovka, which now has the status of a monastery compound. Then the icon returned to the Novocherkassk Cathedral. A few years ago, with the blessing of Metropolitan Mercury of Rostov and Novocherkassk, the head of the Don metropolia, the ancient image was moved to its native place, to the oldest church in the south of Russia — Starocherkassk Army Cathedral of Christ’s Resurrection.

A copy of the icon “Life-Giving Spring” was painted for the Patriarchal Ascension All-Cossack Military Cathedral in the icon-painting workshop of the parish of St. George the Victorious. The same copy was also painted for the Main Army Temple of the South Caucasus.