As reported in the diocese of Bishkek and Kyrgyzstan, the original of the cross is located in the courtyard of the Nikolsky Convent in the village of Godenovo, in the Russian Yaroslavl region. This year marks 600 years since the sanctuary was found. However, it is better to say it: she appeared into the world.
This happened in June 1423 near Rostov the Great. As described in the book “The Life and Miracles of Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker”, on that day the shepherds grazed cattle near the Sakhota swamp in a field near the Nikolsky cemetery (now the village of Pogost Krest, Ilyinsky district, Ivanovo region of the Russian Federation), noticed a light in the east falling from the sky towards the earth. At first they were scared, but then, fascinated by the beauty of the phenomenon, they decided to find out what was happening. They saw a life-giving cross in the air with the image of the Crucifixion of the Lord.
Also interesting is the history of the construction of the temple at the site of the discovery of the sanctuary. Various church sources say, in general, one thing: “news of the miraculous event quickly reached Rostov Archbishop Dionysius, who issued a charter for construction. But how to erect a church in a swamp? Local architects considered this impossible and they decided to build it a little further away…
But the Lord showed a miracle again. The first night after work began, the foundation of the church disappeared. The same light helped the bewildered builders to find the loss… In a way incomprehensible to the human mind, in one night the stream collected all the water from the swamp, and at the place of the appearance of the cross a hill was formed , on which it was no longer difficult to build a temple.”
Over the past 600 years, many things have happened to Goden’s Cross. But from all the adversities the sanctuary emerged safe and sound. Prayers on the cross are believed to cause miracles and cures of diseases. A total of 12 small copies were made.
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The Godin cross is carved from linden wood and represents a human-sized image of Jesus Christ. On the Cross are written the words “stavru ikon”, which means “image of the Cross”. Many details indicate that the sanctuary was created in a Greek-speaking environment. The image of the Savior is a three-dimensional carved figure, which, like an icon, is covered with plaster, pavilion and painted with tempera paints.
