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With the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus', from February 11 to March 17, 2024, in the diocese of the Belarusian Orthodox Church, the ark with part of the Belt of the Most Holy Theotokos and the holy relics of the righteous saints Joachim and Anna is being brought.
The shrine will remain in the Vitebsk diocese from March 5 to 8, 2024. The ceremonial meeting of the shrine will take place on March 5 at 10.00 in the Holy Assumption Cathedral in Vitebsk (Krylova St., 9). Schedule of prayer services with an akathist to the Most Holy Theotokos and her righteous holy parents Joachim and Anna in the Holy Dormition Cathedral: 10.00, 12.00, 14.00, 16.00, 18.00.
A press conference dedicated to the bringing of the belt of the Blessed Virgin Mary to Vitebsk land will take place on March 5, 2024 at 12.00 in the conference hall of the Vitebsk Theological Seminary (Krylova St., 7).
The Belt of the Blessed Virgin Mary is one of the greatest shrines. Part of the belt of the Blessed Virgin Mary is placed in the ark. Also in the ark are particles of the holy relics of the parents of the Mother of God, holy righteous Joachim and Anna. For two thousand years, Christians all over the world have come to the shrine with faith and hope, trusting in the help of the Most Pure Virgin Mary. According to church tradition, the Most Holy Theotokos, shortly before Her Dormition, wove a Belt with her own hands and gave it and Her Robe to the Apostle Thomas. The Robe and Belt were passed down from generation to generation by the heirs of two Jerusalem widows who received the shrine from the hands of St. Thomas the Apostle.
In the 4th century, the clothes of the Blessed Virgin Mary were brought to Constantinople, enclosed in a golden ark, sealed with the royal seal and placed in the Blachernae Church in the city of Constantinople. In honor of this significant event, the church holiday “Position of the Venerable Robe of the Most Holy Theotokos in Blachernae” was established, which is celebrated on July 15. For a long time the shrines were kept in Constantinople, then they were divided into parts. Part of the Belt is today carefully kept in the Vatopedi Monastery on Holy Mount Athos.
In 2011, the shrine was brought to many cities in Russia, where about three million believers, including pilgrims from Belarus, worshiped it. People went to the Belt of the Most Holy Theotokos, offered up their prayers to Her, and the Most Pure One in response did not leave their requests unheard, showing many different miracles and healings. Married couples received deliverance from infertility by diligently turning to the Mother of God in front of Her great shrine. A piece of the Belt was transferred for eternal storage to St. Petersburg and placed in an ark with particles of the relics of the righteous saints Joachim and Anna, the parents of the Most Holy Theotokos. By the grace of God, this ark remains in Belarus from February 10 to March 17. Thousands of believers have the opportunity to venerate the great shrine of the Christian world and ask the Mother of God for help and her merciful intercession.
