Zhyrovichy Monastery

Zhyrovichy Monastery ( _be. Жыровіцкі манастыр) is an Orthodox monastery in Belarus, in the village of Zhyrovichy (Slonim rajon, Hrodna voblast).

The monastery was founded in the 16th century. Due to a belief, an icon of Virgin Mary was found in the local woods. A church was built on the place where the icon was found, but soon it was burned by fire and the icon was lost.

Many years later the icon was found again with mysterious imprints on it – presumably those of Virgin Mary’s palm and foot. The icon is considered miraculous and the stone became part of the altar in the church of Exaltation of the Cross. Since then the Zhyrovichy monastery is a major place of pilgrimage in Belarus.

The Saint Ascension monastery in Zhyrovichy existed even during Soviet times and in 1989 it became a clerical seminary – a highest religious educational institution, accepting entrants from all the countries of the former USSR.

External links

* [http://minds.by/stupeny/nomera/14/st14_34.html Жыровічская ікона.Гісторыя вядомай беларускай святыні] - "The icon of Zhyrovichy: history of a Belarusian artefact"
* [http://www.radzima.org/pub/miesta.php?lang=en&miesta_id1=hrslzhyr Photos on Radzima.org]
* [http://globus.tut.by/zhirovichi/index.htm#monast_main Photos on Globus.tut.by]