On the Eve of Epiphany in Kazakhstan Savior’s icon began to weep

The icon called “Not-Made-By-Hand Image of our Lord Jesus Christ” is located in the church of the Three Saints in Karatau city, and painted by local artist Victor Isayev in 1999.

For the first time the icon wept on 26 March 2000, during the Holy Week in the run-up to Easter. There were secreted drops of myrrh – balmy healing substance – on Jesus Christ’s face.

The icon was then taken to Taraz to the moleben service, during which there was fixed the first unique case of curing a 9-year-old girl of blindness. It was followed by other miracles of healing people from kidney diseases, serious skin diseases, and drug addiction.

According to senior priest of the church of Three Saints father Peter, who has been serving in this church for over 20 years, this time a miraculous icon “Mandylion” secreted myrrh on 15 January, on the eve of Theophany.

Myrrh-seeping is normally taken as a sign of some important, fateful events, or is granted to people for their spiritual strengthening and physical recovery.

By the church legendary, Not-Made-By-Hand Image of our Lord Jesus Christ appeared after the ruler of Edessa city, who had believed in God, asked to send him an image of the Savior to cure his diseases. Christ washed His face with the water and rubbed It with the towel that reflected His image.

The church of the Three Saints became the first shrine to appear in Karatau in 1989. Three Saints – Basil the Great, John Chrysotom and Gregory the Theologian – are considered to be guardians of Karatau city, which was founded in the mid 60s of the last century. A standard one-storey residential house was re-designed to become an Orthodox church. During the cyclone, which heavily damaged residential buildings, industrial constructions, fell trees and poles, – the church survived. At present Karatau church of Three Saints with its unique icons is a pilgrim hub

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