Our Lady of Tinos is the major Marian shrine in Greece

Greece

Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....

. It is located in the town of Tinos on the island of Tinos

Tinos

Tinos is a Greek island situated in the Aegean Sea. It is located in the Cyclades archipelago. In antiquity, Tinos was also known as Ophiussa and Hydroessa . The closest islands are Andros, Delos, and Mykonos...

.

The complex is built around a miraculous icon

Icon

An icon is a religious work of art, most commonly a painting, from Eastern Christianity and in certain Eastern Catholic churches...

 which according to tradition was found after the Virgin appeared to the nun St. Pelagia and revealed to her the place where the icon was buried. The icon is widely believed to be the source of numerous miracles. It is by now almost completely encased in silver, gold, and jewels, and is commonly referred to as the "Megalócharē" ("[She of] Great Grace") or simply the "Chárē Tēs" ("Her Grace"). By extension the church is often called the same, and is considered a protectress of seafarers and healer of the infirm.

The icon was found on the very first days after the creation of the modern Greek State

History of modern Greece

The history of modern Greece covers the history of Greece from the recognition of independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1832 after the Greek War of Independence to the present day.- Background :In 1821, the Greeks rose up against the Ottoman Empire...

, henceforth Our Lady of Tinos was declared the patron saint of the Greek nation

Greeks

The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....

. The icon was at the time thought to be the handwork of St. Luke the Evangelist, a possibility that can neither be confirmed nor ruled out, and a nation-wide fund collection was carried out for the building of a church to house it. The church, built in the Renaissance style, was inaugurated in 1830 and since then it constitutes the major Christian

Christianity

Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...

 pilgrimage

Pilgrimage

A pilgrimage is a journey or search of great moral or spiritual significance. Typically, it is a journey to a shrine or other location of importance to a person's beliefs and faith...

 in Greece, equal to what is Lourdes

Lourdes

Lourdes is a commune in the Hautes-Pyrénées department in the Midi-Pyrénées region in south-western France.Lourdes is a small market town lying in the foothills of the Pyrenees, famous for the Marian apparitions of Our Lady of Lourdes occurred in 1858 to Bernadette Soubirous...

 in France or Fatima

Fatima

-People:* Fatima , a female given name of Arabic origin* Fatima bint Muhammad, daughter of the Islamic prophet, Muhammad* Fatima Jinnah, the younger sister of Muhammad Ali Jinnah...

 in Portugal. The church receives a vast number of donations in silver and gold votives each year; these are auctioned and used for charities.

The church is officially dedicated to the Annunciation

Annunciation

The Annunciation, also referred to as the Annunciation to the Blessed Virgin Mary or Annunciation of the Lord, is the Christian celebration of the announcement by the angel Gabriel to Virgin Mary, that she would conceive and become the mother of Jesus the Son of God. Gabriel told Mary to name her...

 of the Virgin Mary. The major feast of the church, however, is on 15 August when the Dormition of the Virgin Mary (Theotokos

Theotokos

Theotokos is the Greek title of Mary, the mother of Jesus used especially in the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and Eastern Catholic Churches. Its literal English translations include God-bearer and the one who gives birth to God. Less literal translations include Mother of God...

) is commemorated by the Greek Orthodox Church

Greek Orthodox Church

The Greek Orthodox Church is the body of several churches within the larger communion of Eastern Orthodox Christianity sharing a common cultural tradition whose liturgy is also traditionally conducted in Koine Greek, the original language of the New Testament...

, following the strong tradition of the Aegean Islands

Aegean Islands

The Aegean Islands are the group of islands in the Aegean Sea, with mainland Greece to the west and north and Turkey to the east; the island of Crete delimits the sea to the south, those of Rhodes, Karpathos and Kasos to the southeast...

where the Dormition is grandly celebrated in mid-August as the principal summer feast.

External links

• http://www.tinos.biz/panagia_eng.html The Church of Holly Mary