Virgin Mary Myrovlitisa - Holy Monastery of St Paul

The founder of the monastery is Saint Paul of Xeropotamou, who was also the founder of the Xeropotamos monastery near Dafni, the port of Mount Athos. In fact, during the 10th and 11th centuries there are two monasteries with the name Xeropotamou on Mount Athos, since the current monastery of Agios Pavlos was established with this name permanently from 1108 onwards. At the beginning of the 14th century, the Monastery of Agios Pavlos was looted, destroyed and deserted. The successive hardships suffered by the Monastery made it a Cell, i.e. a part of the Xeropotamou Monastery. However, in 1365 the Monastery came under the jurisdiction of two Serbian monks of aristocratic origin, Gerasimos Radonias and Antonio Pigasis. Their presence particularly benefited the Monastery, which was recognized as eighteenth in the hierarchy of holy monasteries in the third Typical of 1394. A few years later, in 1401, the Holy Monastery of Xeropotamou recognizes for the first time as independent the Monastery of Agios Pavlos in an official document of the Patriarch Matthew.

This is the icon which St John of Damascus had recourse and prayed, with his just complaint, holding his severed right hand, with which he had written in favour of the holy icons and which had been cut off by the malice of the Eikonomachi. The Theotokos wrought the miracle of re-attaching the dead hand of her servant and bringing it to life again, while he dedicated to her a silver votive offering in the shape of a hand, which is placed in such a way on the icon that it appears that she has a third hand. The icon, which until the 12th century was kept at the Lavra of St Sabbas, was given to St Sabbas, Archibishop of Serbia, and founder of the Monastery of Chilandari, during a visit to the Holy Land. He took it to Serbia, whence it was brought in a miraculous manner to the Holy Mountain when during the civil strife in Serbia in the reign of King Urosh V the mule whivh always carried the icon before the army was lost and, following a rute of its own, arrived at Chilandari.

In the Christian life believers need to communicate with God through prayer. All the prayers must be said with deep faith and reverence.  Here are five powerful prayers you can say during the day.