Among the visited complex sites of the monastery is the Church of the Nativity of the Mother of God, better known as the Apparition Church. The shrine is unique and interesting in its essence. Let's find out why!
The monastery is rich in significant stories and its main shrines. In particular, Zhirovichi Icon of the Mother of God is included in the list of 100 most revered Orthodox icons in the world. It was this icon, according to stories and legends, that more than once became a miraculous appearance before the people of one large landowner of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Alexander Soltan. According to legend, this all happened around 1470: peasants found an icon in the middle of the forest in the sunlight and took it to their boyar. He did not attach due importance to this event and hid the icon in a chest. That same evening, when they opened the chest, the icon was no longer there. And the next day, in the same place in the forest, the peasants again found this icon and, amazed, brought it to the boyar. And here it is, a significant event - the landowner saw God's providence in this and said in prayer that he would build a church in honor of the Holy Mother of God on the site of the appearance.
This is what happened later: a wooden church was built on this site. Word spread about it, and people began to come to worship at the holy place, and then to the settlements. However, in 1520, a fire destroyed the wooden building. Then, according to legend, the second appearance of the image of the Mother of God with this icon occurred, which miraculously survived the fire. A stone remained on this site, where the stone Apparition Church was built in 1672.
There is another monastery legend about the appearance of the Virgin Mary in the Apparition Church. During the Great Patriotic War, the Germans chose the church to store ammunition. But a strange phenomenon: at night, the guards began to notice the figure of a woman who, in a language they understood, demanded that they leave this place. Then the occupiers ordered the local confessor to search the church. As a result of the search, they found an icon of the Mother of God, in which they recognized that mysterious figure. Unexpectedly for the locals, the Germans nevertheless obeyed the order and left the monastery territory, never returning to these lands during the occupation.
The Apparition Temple is the oldest building of the monastery, dating back to the late Baroque period (it was rebuilt in 1769), and therefore doubly interesting for visiting the historical site. The sacred stone, on the site of which the church was erected, is now placed inside the temple in the altar. And under the floor of the church there is a tomb, in which the archbishop from Zhirovichi, one of the participants in the process of reunification of the Uniates, has been buried since 1881.
It has become an annual tradition in Zhirovichi to receive a large number of pilgrims and tourists on May 20: on this day, the monastery celebrates the appearance of Zhirovichi Icon of the Mother of God. On the holiday, after the service in the Assumption Cathedral, a religious procession of ministers and parishioners heads to the Apparition Church to continue the church festive canons. Therefore, if not on a regular trip, then on this festive date for the monastery, it is worth visiting Belarusian shrine at least for the sake of this unusual event and spectacle.