Christian Orthodox Icon Pendant SAINT MARTYR LYUBOV. PRAYER

Description

Christian Orthodox Icon Pendant SAINT MARTYR LYUBOV. PRAYER

Materials: Sterling Silver (925 grade), 24K Gilding, Blackening

Average weight: 2 grams

Size: 20 x 9 mm (including the bail)

Technique: casting, gilding, blackening, handmade.

Symbolism and application of the item

Saint martyr Lyubov ("Love" in Russian) lived in Italy together with her mother Sophia and ...elder sisters Vera ("Belief") and Nadezhda ("Hope"). She was one of the youngest martyrs of Christ. She was only nine years old. The family lived in the 2nd century in Rome (d. 137). Sophia was, after the loss of her husband, a widow left to raise three daughters by herself. She was a pious Christian and named her daughters after the three Christian virtues. They were all very open about their Christian faith. The emperor Hadrian tried in a gentle way to persuade them to abandon their Christian faith and embrace Roman mythology which was the dominating religion at this time. When the young girls refused, he had them tortured one by one. Sophia was left untouched but her punishment was to watch her daughters suffer. The girls however remained unharmed by the brutal treatment, preserved by the Lord. They died first when they were decapitated. On the day of their death, Vera was 12 years old, Nadezhda 10, and Lyubov 9. The emperor gave the bodies to Sophia and she buried them on a hill outside of the city. She stayed by their graves praying and died after three days. While the girls suffered physical pain for the love of Jesus, Sophia suffered in her heart. In 137, when Lyubov became a martyr, she was only nine years old. The relics of the holy martyrs first resided in Rome, and from the VIII century are in Alsace. The commemoration takes place on September 30 (17). September 30 (according to the Gregorian calendar, September 17 if the Julian) is called the "Day of Remembrance of the Martyrs Faith, Hope, Love and their mother Sophia" (День памяти святых мучениц Веры, Надежды, Любови и матери их Софи). This is an important day within the Orthodox Church. On this day they honor the memory of these martyrs and also women with these names celebrate their "Angel Day/Name Day" (A day when you remember the saints whose name you were given at baptism). A tradition linked to this holiday is that women should begin the day by crying loudly for the faith of their loved ones like mother Sophia cried for her daughters, and if so the bad things in their life would go away.

On the reverse side of the icon is the text of the prayer to the holy martyr: "Holy saint of God Lyubov, pray to God for me, a sinner." This icon pendant can be a nice present to a woman, whose name is one of the mentioned above.

Why should you buy this item?

The pendant can be worn  either as a single unit or with a half-moon decoration, called “цата” in Russian;
It is made with great craftsmanship and love;
In Moscow, there is a church dedicated to Vera, Nadezhda, Lyubov, and their mother Sophia. The church is located about a kilometer away from the metro station Savyolovskaya (Савёловская) and is surrounded by the Miussky cemetery.

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