The Oransk Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God

Commemorated on May 21

The Oransk Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God came to attention in the year 1634 under the following circumstances: the Nizhni Novgorod landowner Petr Gladkov had a deep devotion to the Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God situated in the Moscow Uspenie-Dormition cathedral. He commissioned a copy from this icon and took it back with him to his native region. After several years he received directives in a dream to build a church in honour of the Vladimir Icon on an hill indicated in the dream. Having set off in search of it, Petr in an impassable part of the forest came upon a place over which there was a radiance. Gladkov recognised this as the hill shown him in the dream. This was Mount Slovensk. Having related to Patriarch Joseph about all this, he received a grammota-document granting permission for the building of a church. Having set up a marble cross upon the hill, Petr set about the construction of the church, into which also was placed the icon of the Mother of God, which was given the title Oransk, deriving from the place-name – Orano Pole ("Orano Field") – where the icon had been discovered when the healings began from it. Tsar Mikhail Feodorovich commanded a monastery be built at the church.