Church of the Nativity of the Virgin Elhovo city

Overview

Local chroniclers testify that an ancient Christian sanctuary existed at this place. It is said that there was a monastery in the middle of the 19th century, but there is no definite information about that. In the newspaper "Awakening", issue. 82 of 30. 09. 1927, it is written that on the initiative of the young priest Ivan Atanasov from the village of Dermendere (now Melnitsa) in the village was founded an Orthodox fraternity with 40 regular members, who together with the priest took care of educational and cultural uplift. of the village. In 1926, they decided to build something that would remain as a monument and an eternal memory of this brotherhood. They decided to build an Orthodox chapel in the area "Domuz Bunar" (now Dranchi Dupka), where very strong water sprang. The article states that 50 meters away there is a hole with a diameter of 3 meters in the bair. When you entered this hole, 37 meters deep, you could see a lot of water, like a lake, the depth of which was 11 meters. The chapel of the Nativity of the Mother of God was built there. In the chapel itself there were two separate places where spring water entered. From one place the willing drank, and from the other watered the sick and suffering from various diseases. A fountain with 8 spouts was built outside the chapel. Further in the article it is noted that on September 18, 1927 the priests Varban Varbanov from Elhovo and Ivan P. Atanasov from Melnitsa celebrated a divine liturgy in the presence of numerous visitors from the village of Melnitsa and the surrounding villages and the newly built chapel was consecrated.

In 1999, on the idea of ​​the zealous Orthodox Christian Dora Stoeva and her supporters Ivan Gospodinov Ivanov, Elena Bambeva and Ivan St. Doinov began active work to restore the chapel. In a few months it was restored and equipped for worship. The adjacent terrain has also been renovated and improved. According to the project of Rumen Andreev and designer Zhivko Dragolov, a bell tower was built, on which 3 bells of 100, 60 and 40 kilograms are hung. Every year on the feast of the Nativity of the Mother of God, known among the population as the Little Mother of God, celebrations are organized here. In the calendar of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church the holiday is celebrated every year on September 8.

The story of Mary's childhood is that she was the daughter of Joachim and Anna, descendants of King David. They were childless for a long time, until God finally heard their prayers and gave them to their daughter. Jehoiakim and Anna made a vow to dedicate their child to the Lord, and when she was three years old, they took her to the temple in Jerusalem to dedicate her to God. She remained living at the temple, where she was trained and educated until she came of age.

After the crucifixion of Christ and His Resurrection, she remained in Jerusalem, cared for by Jesus' beloved disciple St. John the Theologian. The Mother of God died of old age with a light death - the so-called Assumption (celebrated on August 15), with which God endowed his most faithful servants.

Legend has it that during the Assumption, all the other living apostles were present at the deathbed of the Mother of God, with only Thomas being 3 days late. When he asked to bow to her body, it was found that in the cave where the Mother of God was buried, only her burial shroud remained.

The Nativity of the Mother of God is one of the three major holidays in the Eastern Orthodox calendar, dedicated to the Mother of God, the holiday is also among the 12 largest religious holidays in the church calendar.

According to Bulgarian traditions, the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary is celebrated mainly by women to help them in trouble or hard work. According to the customs, the mistress of the house prepares a festive pie. She should not sew or weave so that the children in the home do not get sick. Today in all dioceses of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church the holiday is celebrated

 The holy spring with the healing water, the picturesque place and the festive tables gather many people who offer their prayer and gratitude to our Mother the Most Holy Mother of God.