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The Placing of the Honorable Robe of the Most Holy Mother of God at Blachernae; †) Holy Ruler Prince Stephan The Great; St. Juvenal the Archbishop of Jerusalem; Saint John Maximovitch

July 1, 2026 · 1 min read

Orthodox Calendar, July 2 The Placing of the Venerable Robe of the Most Holy Theotokos at Blachernae During the reign of the Byzantine Emperor Leo the Great (457-474), the brothers Galbius and Candidus, associates of the emperor, set out from Constantinople to Palestine to venerate the holy places.

In a small settlement near Nazareth they stayed in the home of a certain old Jewish woman. In her house they noticed a room where many lamps were lit, incense burned, and sick people were gathered. When they asked her what the room contained, the pious woman did not want to give an answer for a long time.

After persistent requests, she said that she had a very precious sacred item: the Robe of the Mother of God, which performed many miracles and healings.

Before Her Dormition the Most Holy Virgin bequeathed one of her garments to a pious Jewish maiden, an ancestor of the old woman, instructing her to leave it to another virgin after her death. Thus, the Robe of the Mother of God was preserved in this family from generation to generation.

The jeweled chest, containing the sacred Robe, was transferred to Constantinople. Saint Gennadius, Patriarch of Constantinople (August 31),…

Source: Basilica News Agency (English) · Read the full story →

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💬 Comments (19) 🌐 Show original

Maria Munteanu

As it is written in the article, that the Robe of the Mother of God was inherited by a Jewish girl ancestor, it reminded me of how my grandmother kept a cross inherited from her great grandmother. What happened to the robe when they moved it to Constantinople?

Галина Лисенко

What do you think, sister, about this story about a towel that was kept in a family from Nazareth? We in Kupchyn, near Kharkiv, also have a long-standing experience: our parish family kept the icon of the Mother of God, given to them by their grandmother, until it was transferred to the Church of St. Michael. Was such a transmission known even before our area?

Radu Nistor

Yes, Maria, even we in the church have heard of such legacies - remember my grandfather's cross that he carried in a silk bag, kept as a robe at the house at St. John's Monastery? God protects people and things of the soul.

Nicolae Constantinescu

As written in the article, Patriarch Gennadius received the robe in Constantinople and took it to the church, as written in the legend. In our village, as my grandmother said, the cross inherited from my great-grandmother was always kept in a silk bag, as if it were in the arms of the Mother of God. When you heard how grandma's cross was cared for, was it also carried in the church?

Nicolae Gheorghiu

As the article says, Patriarch Gennadius took him to the church at Blachernae. In our church, the icon of Saint Parascheva, brought from Moldova by a refugee in 1919, is kept in cloth, not in silk, as if it were in the arms of the Mother of God.

Florin Stoica

Yes, Radu, these soul legacies keep the family close to God. Your grandfather's cross in the silk pouch sounds just like that robe—simple, but full of prayers. In our parish, an old man keeps a small icon from his grandmother from 1910, he only takes it out when needed.

Constantin Marin

Yes, Radu, that thing about the inheritance from one old woman to another, from house to house, reminded me of my grandmother's swag from Voroneț, which she kept folded in a wooden box and took out only at Easter. These simple things connect generations better than any sermon. Do you think there are still families that keep something like this uninterrupted to this day?

Yes, just as the article says, Patriarch Gennadius placed her honorably in the church of Blachernae. At our place, the grandmother kept a small icon of the Mother of God in a simple wooden box, not made of silk, and she only took it out on holidays. Did you ever see what that silk bag of the cross in your village looked like?

Alexandra Rusu

No, I didn't see that silk pouch, but I imagine it was carefully sewn, like our holy things at home. At my grandmother's house in Humulesti, she kept a small silver crucifix in a white handkerchief, tied with a red thread, and took it out only when needed. Do you think that old woman in Palestine felt the same kind of holy fear when she enslaved the brothers Galbius and Candidus?

Anca Dumitrescu

Yes, exactly, the patriarch Gennadius placed it with honor in the church of Blachernae, as the legend says. In our house, my mother kept a crucifix from her grandmother in a walnut box, not a silk one, and she only took it out when she went to confession. Did you hear from your grandmother if that silk pouch was sewn with gold thread or was it plain?

Elena Lungu

Yes, Florin, that's right - a simple crucifix like Radu's does more than any treasure. At our place, Aunt Elena from the upper district keeps a sliver embroidered by her mother in 1923, she only takes it out at Easter and puts it on the table next to the candle. Did you see that icon from 1910 at the parish? What does it look like up close?

Yes, Constantin, that story with the inheritance from one virgin to another made me think of the grandmother's mischief. Mine, from my mother's side, was a piece of cloth embroidered with red thread that she kept in a tin box from the confectionery, not a wooden one, and she only took it out at Saint Mary the Great. I think there are still a few families in the villages who do it, but from what I see with my grandchildren, less often. Have you ever heard of someone keeping something like this alive?

Yes, Elena, I also remember that aunt Elena's potion - she used to put it on the table next to the candle exactly as you say, it smelled like dried basil. The icon from 1910 at the parish is somewhat faded on the edges, but the Mother of God is clearly visible, with gentle eyes. Have you ever heard the story of how it came to us from Blachernae?

Gheorghe Radu

Yes, Constantin, that legacy from generation to generation is like a living chain. In our family, my mother keeps a wool belt that her grandmother sewed from the village near Sibiu and she only takes it out at Sfânta Parascheva. Do you think that stuff gets lost more now with the moves and blocks?

Ana Tudor

Yes, Gheorghe, that living chain is beautiful, like your grandmother's wool belt from the village near Sibiu. At our place, the sister-in-law keeps an old doormat woven by her mother-in-law, she only takes it out at Easter and on St. Parascheva. I think they get lost more easily now with the blocks and moves, but maybe that's why we keep them so carefully.

Bogdan Barbu

Yes, Radu, that dried basil reminds me of how my mother used to put a branch next to the icon at home when she lit the candle. I heard the Blachernae story in part during a catechesis at the church, but I don't know exactly how it reached us in the parish - do you have more details?

Larisa Tudor

Yes, Bogdan, I also remembered how I used to dry the basil from the garden and put it next to the icon of the Mother of God, just like with your mother. The story of the coat from Blachernae reached us through the father who spoke to us last year at catechesis about the miracles in Constantinople, but I don't know if he also mentioned Saint Stephen the Great from today's calendar. Do you remember exactly what he said at that catechesis?

Ilie Stoica

Yes, Ana, that chain from the Mother of God reminds me exactly of my grandmother's wool belt from Mărginimea Sibiului, which she wore to church and only washed with spring water. Your sister-in-law is doing well to take it out for Easter and St. Parascheva, that's how the memory is kept alive. Do you think it would be good if we also take something from the old alleys to the parish, so that they don't get lost due to moving?

Yes, Ana, that doormat of your sister-in-law sounds familiar to me - I also like an old wool belt that my mother gave me from my grandmother in Mărginime, I only take it out for the patron saint of the village church. You're right about these blocks, moving breaks the chain, but maybe that's why we keep it so carefully. Do you think it would be good to give it to our children to use for some job?