The Mother of God of Hodigitria

From the beginnings of Christianity, its devotees sought signs in the prophecies of the Old Testament, wanting to confirm the realisation of the supernatural events of the New Testament. The content of the Burning Bush Mother of God icon refers to several events of the Old Covenant which foretell the birth of Christ and connect to the person of the Mother of the Saviour, through whom the Incarnation took place. The depiction of the Burning Bush Mother of God was named after the bush which was on fire and yet not consumed by flames, seen by Moses on Mount Horeb (Exodus 3:1-5). This bush symbolised the Virgin Mary, who conceived the Son of God through the Holy Spirit. Since the early centuries of Christianity, the theme of Incarnation was depicted in the person of the Mother of God with the young Christ Emmanuel on her bosom, placed against the background of the burning bush revered by Moses, see S.12825MŁ, S.12826MŁ. One of the oldest icons of the Burning Bush known in Rus was brought to Moscow by a Palestinian monk in 1390. According to tradition, it was supposed to made on the rock from which Moses saw the bush that was burning but not getting consumed by flames. The icon was placed in the sanctuary of the Cathedral of the Annunciation in the Moscow Kremlin. Since the middle of the 16th c., a complex allegorical-symbolic depiction showing the mystery of Incarnation developed in the lands of Rus. The Mother of God Hodegetria with Baby Jesus, see S.12677MŁ, is placed on the background of an eight-pointed star made of two quadrangles with concave sides and of eight fields between the arms of the star. Effective protection against fires and during storms was attributed to the Burning Bush images. The feast day of the icon, established in 1680, is celebrated on the 17th of September (September 4 in the Julian calendar), on the day of the commemoration of Prophet Moses. On the displayed icon, the allegorical-symbolic content is reduced; this content was discussed on the example of other Burning Bush icons, under S.12769MŁ, S.12862MŁ. Teresa Bagińska-Żurawska https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9243-3967