Mănăstirea Granitsa

Overview

The  monastery "St. Luke" is a functioning Bulgarian Orthodox monastery. It is part of the Kyustendil Spiritual District of the Sofia Diocese. It is believed that the monastery was founded in the 10th century (this is supported by the name of the place where the monastery was built, the early foundations discovered and the nearby medieval fortress "Border"), repeatedly destroyed by the Turks, rebuilt in the twentieth century (1948). .). Two collective finds were found in the garden of the monastery: several hundred silver Venetian coins from the 14th century and billon coins of the Byzantine emperors Alexius I Comnenus (1081 - 1118), Manuel I Comnenus (1143 - 1180), Andronicus I Comnenus (1183 - 1185) and Isaac II Angel (1185 - 1195). The three sons of Jacob, bishop of Krupnik, south of today's Blagoevgrad - Joasaph, David and Theophanes, who after being widowed, settled in the small monastery, and later restored and renovated the desolate and looted Rila Monastery (1453 - 1466 d.). After their merit to the Rila holy monastery, the relics of the patron saint of the Bulgarian people - Ivan Rilski - were returned there. The monastery "St. Luka ”is a complex of one-nave, one-apse and domeless church, on the western facade of which is attached a bell tower and monastery residential buildings. There is a legend that in the monastery resided St. Ivan Rilski. A fountain was built in the monastery yard, dedicated to the three monks Joasaph, David and Theophanes, a native of the village of Granitsa - restorers of the Rila Monastery. The monastery has been declared a cultural monument. It is currently permanent. The temple holiday is on October 18 and is celebrated annually.