A summer pilgrimage was held on July 22-24, 2023, at the Romanian Orthodox Monastery of Mono in Ontario, Canada. The wonder-working Hawaiian Iveron Icon of the Mother of God („Gerontissa”) was brought on the occasion.
Orthodox pilgrims from across Canada attended the event: from Montreal, Ottawa, Gatineau, Toronto, Mississauga, Hamilton, Kichener, London, Windsor, and Manitoba.
The liturgical schedule of the first day included the Divine Liturgy and the Holy Unction, officiated at the new summer altar.
“We have in our midst the Icon of the Mother of God of Hawaii, well-known to all of us. It represents the one who is the protector of the Church and the mother of us all,” said His Grace Ioan Casian, Romanian Orthodox Bishop of Canada.
“Through it, through the myrrh that springs from it, we can perceive the visible sign of the invisible work of God’s grace. Icons are a presence of Christ, the Mother of God and the saints in our midst, in the midst of the Church and the world in which we live. They are a sign to all who ask for help from God and His saints.”
„If we look in the Holy Gospels, we will notice that the texts that speak about the Mother of God are few, but representative. Discreetly, the Mother of God kept the words about her Son in her heart. She is a model of obedience,” continued the hierarch.
“That’s why the Church ordered the reading of the Gospel pericope that talks about Martha and Mary. It does not refer directly to the Mother of God, but to the model of obedience that the other Mary offers, like the Mother of God, and that we must follow as the Church of those who heed the word of God,” His Grace added.
Also serving with Bp. Ioan Casian were Fr. Nektarios Yangston, the guardian of the myrrh-streaming Hawaiian Iveron Icon of the Mother of God, Fr. Dumitru Gavrilă—a spiritual son of Elders Cleopa (Ilie) and Arsenie (Papacioc)—the clergy of the monastery and other visiting clerics.
Liturgical answers were offered by Protopsaltes Andrei Ghebaru, a member of the “Tronos” Byzantine Music Group from the Patriarchal Cathedral in Bucharest.
After a communal meal, Father Iskander Younes joined the synaxis of clerics officiating the Holy Unction.
The liturgical events continued with a procession of the icons of the Mother of God from the patrimony of the monastery, with readings of the Psalter and the Hymns dedicated to the wonder-working icons.
Father Vladimir Malchenko from the “Holy Trinity” Church in Toronto (ROCOR) joined later in the religious services.
The icon remained at the monastery for the following two days.
The original Gerontissa Icon is found at Pantocrator Monastery on Mt. Athos, celebrated on December 2. It is one of the patronal feasts of the Mono Monastery, along with “The Elevation of the Holy Cross” (September 15) and “St Ephraimus the New” (May 5).
Photo credit: Romanian Orthodox Diocese of Canada
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