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THE PALLADIUM 

OF 

THE HOLY MONASTERY 

“The Lady the Faneromeni” 

The miraculous guardian patron, portable, silver-plated icon 

of the Holy Monastery of the All-Holy Virgin Faneromeni, 1874. 

First english edition 

© Holy Metropolis of Ierapetra and Siteia 

Texts – Edition: Archimandrite Kyrillos Diamantakis, 

Chancellor of the Holy Metropolis of Ierapetra and Siteia 

English Translation and Edition: Maria Kouroumali 

Photos: Deacon Amvrosios Skarvelis 

1

HOLY MONASTERY OF THE ALL-HOLY VIRGIN FANEROMENI OF IERAPETRA 

PROLOGUE 

As the pilgrim enters the boundaries of the Holy Metropolis 

of Ierapetra and Siteia, after the village of Kalo Chorio and 

before the archaeological site of the Minoan city of Gournies, 

he gazes at the historic and glorious Holy Monastery of the 

All-Holy Virgin Faneromeni of Ierapetra. 

Nestled upon the rock with the cavernous impressive 

church and the fortress-like features with the conspicuous 

embrasures, the entire monastic complex is reminiscent of a 

weapons emplacement of the spirit. 

The constant attacks of the Saracens and of the other 

conquerors remind us of the continuous defence of the monks 

against exterior dangers. At the same time though, they 

confirm that they are battling constantly, as holy trustees of 

our unblemished Orthodox faith, to keep its bulwarks, the 

Monasteries, alive. The Monk struggles daily to hold the fort 

of his soul upright and to have inner peace and balance in 

order to spread the sense of the living presence of the eternal 

and true God, of our All-Holy Virgin, of the Saints, of the 

Holy Fathers and Ascetics, to all the pilgrims. 

The Monastery of the All-Holy Virgin Faneromeni began 

as a hermitage. “Countless ascetics have passed through here. 

Oh, if only you could see them!” the blessed Elder Porphyrios 

of Kafsokalyvia, who reposed in 1991, used to say. This is 

confirmed by the cavernous church of the Monastery, but 

also by the many caves which exist in the surrounding area, 

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where the saints and ascetics lived in fasting, vigils, and 

prayer and have left us the holiness of their life as a sacred 

trust. 

The faithful who visit the Holy Monastery feel this 

fragrance of holiness and the spiritual uplifting. The natural 

elevation lifts you high up to the sky, to a place of spiritual 

transcendence and ascent far away from the earthly and daily 

cares. The pilgrims become aware and benefit spiritually 

from their pilgrimage. The Fathers welcome them cordially 

and with genuine love and help them to communicate with 

God, our All-Holy Virgin, and their fellow humans. 

As we write the prologue to this brief pilgrimage guide, 

we hope, paternally, that each pilgrim, who comes to this 

historic Monastery and invokes the Maternal mediations 

of the Guardian and Patron, of our All-Holy Virgin 

Faneromeni with faith and piety, will experience in his heart 

the inexpressible spiritual joy, and, wholeheartedly, we bless 

the effort of renovation and manning of this sacred and 

historic place, which – since the 12 th century – maintains the 

flame of faith unquenched and the witness of the spirit alive. 

“Seek the things above, desire the things above and not 

the things of the earth” (Col. 3, 1-2). The hostess Lady 

Theotokos and ever-virgin Mary invites us all to a spiritual 

feast and generously repays the toil and sweat of every 

anonymous and known pilgrim. 

With paternal blessings 

Ierapetra 2011 

+ Metropolitan Evgenios of Ierapetra and Siteia 

3


1 

FOUNDATION AND LOCATION 

OF THE MONASTERY 

The Holy Monastery of the All-Holy Virgin Faneromeni of 

Ierapetra, also known as “the All-Holy Virgin of Gournies,” is 

located to the southwest of Pachia Ammos of the Municipality 

of Ierapetra and above the Minoan city of Gournia, built on 

an elevation of 540 metres on the slope of a mountain branch 

of Diktys. The city of Agios Nikolaos and the beautiful bay of 

Merambellou with its picturesque coasts and its islets can be seen 

from the Monastery in panoramic view. 

There is no dedicatory or other inscription with the exact date 

of the foundation of the Monastery. Only more recent inscriptions 

are preserved, which refer to building work that took place in the 

19 th century, although the present building complex, according to 

its architecture, is probably a construction of the 16 th century, a 

period of frequent predatory raids by the Turks on the north coast 

of Crete. The exact year of the foundation of the Monastery is not 

known. However, according to all the historical sources and the 

chronological indicators, the Monastery may have been founded 

during the middle Byzantine period (961–1204), namely earlier 

than the conquest of Crete by the Venetians in the year 1211. 

The Catholicon of the Monastery has been built inside the cavity 

of an overhanging large rock, in a cave, is entirely decorated with 

icons, and is dedicated to the Dormition of the Theotokos and the 

Zoodochos Pigi (Life-giving Spring). The sanctuary communicates 

with another cave. Water gathers there from capillary surfaces, 

which the faithful receive as holy water (agiasma). 

According to tradition, inside the cavernous church of the 

Catholicon of the Monastery, the icon of the Theotokos was 

revealed to a shepherd and this is why the Monastery was named 

All-Holy Virgin Faneromeni (She who is Revealed). Specifically, 

4

Τhe entrance of the Monastery. 

this shepherd lost his guide, the leader of his herd, every day around 

noon. One day, he decided to leave his herd and observe the ram 

that went to a broken rock, from where a little water flowed, and 

drank. He approached and there found the icon of the Theotokos. 

When, however, he took it with him and placed it in his sack in 

order to bring it back to the sheepfold, the icon disappeared. The 

next day the shepherd came back to the same place and found the 

icon again. This was repeated several times until the shepherd was 

certain that the icon always returned to the place it was found; for 

this reason, he left it in its place where, gradually, the Monastery 

was built. The icon itself, at certain times, especially during the 

fifteen days of the fast in August (in honour of the Dormition) 

and the other Marian feasts, reappears to the faithful and, in a 

mysterious way, vanishes again. 

Aside from a sacred shrine and a religious boast of the whole 

of Eastern Crete, the monastery is also a historic place where 

the Cretan revolutionaries found refuge and reinforcement in 

the difficult years of the Venetian and Turkish subjugation. The 

fortified location and the fortress-like form of the Monastery 

amply prove its defensive character. Indeed, battlements and 

embrasures still survive in the areas of the fortress complex of the 

Monastery, as they do in most of the monasteries which were built 

during the same period. 

5

2HOLY MONASTERY OF THE ALL-HOLY VIRGIN FANEROMENI OF IERAPETRA 

THE ASSEMBLY OF 1293 

From the beginning, at least, of the 13 th century, the 

Monastery became the reverential shrine, the miraculous refuge, 

and the protection of the persecuted Christians of the region and 

of all of Crete. It was the remote secret location of revolutionary 

assemblies, over which the invisible presence of the Lady Theotokos 

Faneromeni sat and presided. 

According to the narrative described by V. Psillakis in his 

history, after the victorious Genovese, Piscatore, conquered Crete 

in 1204 and sold it to the Venetians in 1211, the Cretans rallied 

around Alexios Kallergis and in the year 1282 revolted against 

the Venetians. Even though all facts pointed to the revolutionaries 

defeating the conquerors, the Genoese offered Kallergis considerable 

support through Admiral Doria without demanding anything in 

return. However, Alexios refused, there was agitation among the 

revolutionary leaders and the unity, which was necessary under the 

circumstances, was seriously damaged. Factions were created and 

half supported submission to the Genoese, the other half agreed 

with Kallergis, while some deputy commanders began to leave his 

army. 

Within this atmosphere, the Abbot of the Monastery 

of Faneromeni of Ierapetra invited all the divided military 

commanders to the church of the Monastery on Palm Sunday of 

1293. After they had received the Holy Eucharist, he closed the 

church with all of them inside and transformed it into a parliament 

with him as president. Intense disputes and quarrels took place and 

the rebelling people entered the church holding the banner of the 

Byzantine Emperor, Andronikos Palaiologos. The commanders left 

and only seven from the rural territories remained. After a while, 

they exited the church, chanting the victory hymn with branches 

6

and laurel leaves, swore fealty and submission to Andronikos, and 

cheered him. The Abbot blessed the banner and they placed it next 

to Christ Crucified. This chronicle, regardless of the outcome of 

the Assembly (the revolutionaries, unfortunately, were divided into 

five different parties), is witness to the fact that the Monastery is 

the oldest one of Eastern Crete and played a coordinating role in 

critical occasions for the nation. 

Portable icon of the Theotokos. 

7

3HOLY MONASTERY OF THE ALL-HOLY VIRGIN FANEROMENI OF IERAPETRA 

THE PERIOD OF TURKISH OCCUPATION 

The Monastery, due to its strategic location on an inaccessible 

slope and in a place where it dominates, was the fortress and 

the base of the fighter Christian Revolutionaries of the province 

against the many years of Turkish yoke. It was directly linked 

with the hard and difficult liberation struggles and became the 

hiding place and the base of the chieftain fighters and their place 

of assembly, in which decisions of historical import were taken. 

The hole above the lintel of the central entrance, known as a 

“scalding hole,” from where boiling oil was poured down upon 

the enemies that tried to break into the area of the Monastery, 

is indicative of its defensive character. When the Monastery was 

surrounded by the conquerors, the small cave to the southwest of 

the cavernous church of the Transfiguration of the Saviour, which 

is the cemetery church of the Monastery, connected the Monastery 

with the outside world and was used for the supply and exit of the 

fighters. 

The national offering of the Monastery of Faneromeni or 

“Gourniotissa” was immense during the difficult years of the 

Turkish occupation and acted as a bastion for the fighters of the 

Cretan revolutions. Indeed, it also financially reinforced the various 

revolutions against the Turks, as did all the other Monasteries 

of Crete. Many Christians who believed in the Greek revolution 

and had seen the help and protection of the All-Holy Virgin 

clearly – such as the famous chieftain of Kato Chorio of Ierapetra, 

Fragios Tsantirakis or Papadakis, who had found sanctuary in the 

Monastery of Faneromeni many times – dedicated fields, mainly, to 

the Monastery in an effort to strengthen the struggle for freedom 

financially. The inconspicuous but admirable cooperation of 

Monastery and revolutionaries is also witnessed by the letter of the 

8 

View of the elaborate wood-carved 

altar screen of the Catholicon.

9


Abbot Neophytos in 1878 to the military commander Emmanuel 

Lakerdas from Anatoli, with which he asked for the protection 

of the Monastery of Faneromeni from the depredations and raids 

of the Turks. Moreover, the treasury of the Monastery always 

contributed respectable sums of money to charitable causes, such 

as education, the preservation of various shops, and others. 

The monastery was renovated, began to be organised and 

to be known in 1839, when Chatzi-Gerasimos became Abbot. 

The active Gerasimos gave the cavernous Church the form it 

has today and furnished it with altar screens and icons. He 

attracted pilgrims, who dedicated various valuables and estates 

to the Monastery, purchased lands, and laid the foundation for its 

economic development. 

View of the cave where the icon of the All-Holy Virgin Faneromeni 

was revealed. 

10

4THE SECRET SCHOOL AND THE HEROINE 

RODANTHI KRITSOTOPOULOU 

The monks of the Holy Monastery of Faneromeni taught 

reading and writing, not only to the youth who had found refuge in 

the Monastery, but also to the children of the surrounding villages. 

Even though the Turkish conquerors had forbidden the operation 

of schools, hoping that in this way the flame of revolution would 

be quenched, the first Secret School of Crete operated in the Holy 

Monastery of Faneromeni. In it, the priest – teacher, during the 

dismal years of Turkish occupation, fomented the flame of faith for 

religion and country in the souls of the Greek children, increased 

the desire for freedom, and solidified the decision of the struggle 

for national resistance. 

In the Monastery of Faneromeni, under the sweet light of the oil 

or vigil lamp, the Christian children learned about Alexander the 

Great, the marble king, and about the ancient glory of Hellenism, 

alongside ecclesiastical letters. In this workshop of faith and 

patriotism, they learned – apart from the basic letters – that way 

which would help them to sanctify their thoughts, their feelings 

and their inner character, and the means which would lead them 

effectively to overthrow the Turkish yoke and to the resurrection 

of our nation. There, the national conscience and the faith for 

God were renewed, the militant spirit of the enslaved Cretans 

was reinforced and revived, and their desire for the freedom of the 

nation was increased. 

The room, in which the Secret School operated, is located to 

the southwest of the Monastery and to the right of its central 

entrance and courtyard. This is a room with a large mezzanine 

level incorporated in the entire building complex of the Monastery, 

with small, combat-ready windows, as the conditions of the period 

in which it was built demanded. 

The legendary Rodanthi, the Kritsotopoula, the daughter of the 

Protopappas (senior priest) of Kritsa, who later became the “chief 

11


The entrance 

of the area in which 

the Secret School 

operated. 

bodyguard” of the chieftain Kazanomanolis, studied in this school. 

At the age of only five years old she was brought by her father in 

secret to the Monastery of Faneromeni, where, under the scant 

light offered by the flame of the humble vigil lamp, the education 

“in the ways and admonitions of the Lord” that her pious parents 

had given her was completed and she dedicated herself completely 

to the eternal ideals of the Orthodox faith and country. Rodanthi, 

this wonderful and inspired Cretan young woman, had the 

Monastery of Faneromeni as her school of piety and patriotism, 

with the help and protection of which she realised unsurpassable 

actions of superb heroism and self-sacrifice, achievements which 

revived the morale of the enslaved Cretans and brought fear and 

awe to the Turkish conquerors. 

This heroine, after killing Hursit Aga in the village of 

Choumeriako in Merambellou because he contrived against 

her honour, disguised as a man and under the pseudonym of 

“Spanomanolis” (meaning ‘beardless Manolis’) enlisted in the 

army of Captain Kazanis and was a terrible scourge for the Turks 

of the area. Finally, she died fighting in the battle of Kontaratos 

in 1823. 

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5 

THE DEDICATIONS TO THE MONASTERY 

AND THE MODERN PERIOD 

“The Life-giving Spring,” portable icon of altar screen, 1843. 

In the documents that are related to the financial situation 

of the Monastery (dedicatory documents, bills of sale, and 

fergatia) the vivid piety of our ancestors is witnessed, not only of 

the surrounding villages, but also of the inhabitants outside the 

province of Ierapetra, which was expressed through works of a 

pious disposition. At the same time, the Monastery also played 

a protective role for the properties of many Christians, who 

dedicated all of their property, or a part of it, to the monastery in 

order to save them from Turkish oppression. And the dedication of 

lands to the Monastery in memory, and for the forgiveness of sins, 

of parents, who had passed away, was moving. 

13


Panoramic view of the Monastery. 

For the Turks found various reasons to deprive the enslaved 

Greek from his lands, unless they were dedicated to a charitable 

foundation, namely they became “vakifs,” in which case, they were 

rescued. 

From these donations of the Christians, the Monastery had 

acquired a large rural estate during the period of the Turkish 

occupation and it had as dependencies the Holy Monasteries of 

Armos, Exakousti, and Kayrdiani of Ierapetra. Indeed, its large 

estate was the cause of an intense litigation with the Turkish agas 

of Ierapetra, the Tsagalides, who had neighbouring estates and 

tried to grab the contiguous lands of the Monastery, which was 

forced to resort to legal battles in order to preserve its properties. 

During the census of 1893, the Monastery had in its ownership 

the area which extended to the sea (around ten thousand acres), 

four dependencies (Pyrovolous, Assari, Achlada, Vrygiomenou) 

and scattered fields which were to be found in 239 different 

locations of the provinces of Ierapetra, Merambellou and Siteia. 

14

“The Dormition of the Theotokos.” Portable icon from altar screen. 

However, the Fund of the Reserve Fighters of Crete, 

according to law 3345 of 22nd June 1925, took the three fifths 

of the Monastery’s estate for the relief and restitution of the 

poor families of the reserve fighters of the Asia Minor campaign 

while considerable lands were sold by the Management Agency of 

Monastic Property of the county of Lasithi. 

In 1881, the Monastery had seven Monks, while in 1901, 

after the remaining monasteries of Ierapetra were considered 

dissolvable (Exakousti and Karydiani), it numbered nineteen 

Monks. The Constitution Law 276 of 1900 of the Orthodox 

Church pronounced the Monastery of Faneromeni soluble. With 

Law 553 of 1903 the Monastery was reconstituted, while with a 

new decree of 8th July 1930, the Monastery was deemed soluble 

again. With the Law of 24th October 1935 it was preserved and, 

finally, with Law 4149/1961 “On the Charter of the Orthodox 

Church in Crete,” the Monastery was deemed to be a historic 

grade-listed building complex and active, thereby continuing to 

15


“The Life-giving Spring.” Representation in relief – covering of silver Gospel, 

Holy Monastery of Faneromeni, gift of the Bishop of Ierositeia, Hilarion, 1866. 

write its history until the present day, faithful to its heavy and 

long-standing tradition. 

During the German-Italian occupation of 1941–1944 

many persecuted and resistance patriots found refuge and had 

the Monastery as their base. The Fathers and the shepherds of 

Faneromeni hid the men of the Allied Forces in the caves of the 

surrounding area, offered them asylum, and helped them escape 

to Egypt. 

16

“The Dormition of the Theotokos.” Representation in relief – covering of silver 

Gospel, Holy Monastery of Faneromeni, gift of the Bishop of Ierositeia, Hilarion, 

1866. 

Two monks live in the Monastery today, and, under the 

wise guidance and the undivided care and paternal affection of 

His Eminence, Metropolitan of Ierapetra and Siteia, Evgenios, 

maintain the rich and heavy tradition they have inherited, serving 

the Divine Liturgy daily according to the Byzantine typikon. The 

entire renovation and restoration of this historic Monastery, 

without altering its architectural character and form, is the vision 

of a lifetime. 

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6 

THE FEAST OF THE DORMITION 

Vespers of the feast of the Dormition, 14 August 2011. 

The historic Monastery of Faneromeni celebrates the feast of the 

Dormition of the Theotokos on August 15. A multitude of faithful 

inundates the Monastery annually, especially during the actual 

day of the feast. The All-Holy Virgin Faneromeni is miraculous 

and, therefore, is famous throughout Crete and particularly in the 

County of Lasithi and the provinces of Pediada and Viannos of the 

County of Heraklion. 

Thus, in August, which is the month of the All-Holy Virgin and 

dedicated to Her, the Monastery is one of the biggest pilgrimage 

sites of Eastern Crete. A large number of people flock to it daily, 

tired, and exhausted from the trials and the conditions of life so that 

they can deposit their inner problems in front of Her miraculous 

icon. Many patients seek to be healed. Others climb up to the 

monastery on foot to fulfil their vow; black-clad and bare-foot 

18

mothers lift their babies and offer them to the Mother of the whole 

world; others come in order to beg the Mistress of the world, with 

tears in their eyes, to fulfil one of their desires; many to thank and 

glorify the Queen and Lady of all for Her benefactions, chanting: 

“No one who resorts to you, proceeds from you ashamed, o pure 

virgin Mother of God…” 

Apart from the numerous pilgrims who gather from many areas 

of the island to revere the miraculous icon in the other-worldly, 

remote, devout, and grace-filled cavernous church, faithful of all 

ages are hosted in the areas of the Monastery during the fifteen 

days of August. They – continuing an ancient tradition – come to 

the Monastery and spend the first fifteen days of August in the 

renovated guesthouse with fasting and prayer, participate in the 

daily Divine Liturgies, the Vespers, Invocations, and Compline 

Services and, in this way, fulfil one of their vows. 

The feast of the All-Holy Virgin in the Monastery has something 

unique. The faithful, continuing the tradition of many generations, 

come up with reverence and humility, with spirituality and faith, 

to pray to the Lady Faneromeni and to communicate with God 

genuinely. And the All-Holy Virgin the Faneromeni rewards them 

with the sacred things effected in Her 

house and offers them spiritual relief and 

peace so that they may continue on the 

road of life. Because the faithful person 

can place his hopes and longings only 

upon the All-Holy Virgin Mother with 

certainty and faith and can seek Her 

mighty shelter and protection, chanting: 

“Upon you I lay my every hope, Mother 

of God, protect me under Your shelter.” 

19


“The Dormition of the Theotokos.” Portable icon from altar screen, 

by the hand of John Nikolaides, 1843. 

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7 

MIRACULOUS EVENTS AND HEALINGS 

The miracles which take place in the Monastery are many, as 

the faithful, who have seen with their eyes the grace of God acting 

by healing some physical or mental illness of theirs through the 

mediation of the All-Holy Virgin, the Lady Faneromeni, confirm 

at times. Also proof of the miracles and benefactions, which the 

Faneromeni generously gives to the Christians, are the countless 

votive offerings – oblations that are offered by the beneficiaries 

and healed faithful and which are suspended in front of Her holy 

miraculous icon. Indicatively, we quote some miracles. 

1) It is mentioned that in the difficult mid-war years (Second 

World War), a mother from Ierapetra, who already had three 

children, gave birth to another one. Unfortunately, her fourth 

child, while it was born healthy, became entirely paralysed after 

it froze as it remained exposed to the cold, in the area of Assaris 

where they dwelt. It was about four years old. She could not 

raise it because of the great economic distress, and she decided to 

surrender it to the Monastery of Faneromeni. Therefore, at night, 

she came up to the Monastery on foot and left the child outside 

the door. “Let the All-Holy Virgin take it and either She will heal 

it or let Her take it with Her,” she thought. 

The next day the Monks found the child outside the gate of 

the Monastery. They decided to surrender it to the Constabulary, 

when they came down from the Monastery. However, at night, 

the Abbot of the Monastery saw in his sleep the All-Holy Virgin 

telling him: “In the morning, take the child you found outside the 

door and go and bury it in the sand, on the beach.” The next day 

the Abbot mentioned to the Fathers of the Monastery the strange 

dream he had seen. 

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The Brothers wondered. They perhaps felt that this was a 

message of the All-Holy Virgin but they were hesitant, though, 

to do what she asked. The next evening the Abbot saw the All- 

Holy Virgin again and she repeated the same words she had told 

him the previous night with intensity. In the morning, after the 

service, the Elder announced the reappearance of the All-Holy 

Virgin to the Fathers of the Monastery and her command to bury 

the child in the sand. Again the Brothers refused to do it. For the 

third night again, the All-Holy Virgin appeared to the Abbot in 

his sleep and, intensely, commanded him to do what she ordered, 

otherwise a great evil would come upon them. The next morning, 

the Fathers of the Monastery, since they had now been convinced 

that this was the order of the All-Holy Virgin to bury the child in 

the sand, placed it upon a sheet, came down to the beach and did 

what She had commanded. They buried the child in the sand and 

only allowed its little head to be seen above the sand. They left for 

the Monastery with great hesitation and bewilderment as to what 

would follow. In the afternoon, all the Fathers together, chanted 

an Invocation to the All-Holy Virgin, and the next day served the 

Divine Liturgy, to beg the Lady Faneromeni to reveal Her plan to 

them immediately. 

The third day, a villager came up to the Monastery, holding 

a child in his arms. It was the one the Fathers had buried at the 

beach. He told them that he had heard it shout as he was passing 

by the beach, took it in his arms and brought it to the Monastery 

because the child itself had told him that it wished to be brought up 

to the Monastery. The All-Holy Virgin had healed it completely! 

2) Many are the couples who come to pray to the grace-flowing 

icon of the All-Holy Virgin the Faneromeni in order for Her to 

help them have a child. Many parents come to the Monastery to 

thank her for the child she made them worthy to give birth to 

and dedicate it to Her grace giving it Her name, Maria, Marios, 

Panagiotis, Despina, Faneromeni, Faneros, and others, or also 

22

aptising it in Her devout 

and cavernous Church, 

but also to receive the 

blessing of the Forty days 

at the Monastery. 

a) Thirty-five years 

ago, a woman from 

Heraklion came, who 

had a great desire to bear 

a child. She begged the 

Nun Filothei of blessed 

memory, who was then 

serving at the monastery, 

to accompany her to the 

Church at night and to 

serve an Invocation to the 

All-Holy Virgin. Indeed, 

just before midnight, 

Veneration of the faithful 

during the Feast of the Dormition. 

they went to the Church, served the Invocation and, when the 

service ended, the Nun gave the woman a little piece from the wick 

of the vigil lamp of the All-Holy Virgin. “After you have fasted, 

eat it before you eat anything,” she told her. After some time, the 

woman gave birth to a healthy baby boy. The doctor coming out 

of the delivery room asked the woman: “Did you give birth to this 

child through a miracle?” “Yes, through a miracle. Why do you 

ask?” said the mother. “Because I can see this mark on the foot 

of the baby.” Then, the mother, surprised, saw a tiny mark, like 

“a scab”, on the ankle of the baby. This tiny mark was exactly the 

shape and size of the wick which she had eaten from the vigil lamp 

of the All-Holy Virgin! This mark remained on the foot of the 

child for several years. 

b) A couple from Chania was trying to have a baby for 

twelve years. They made many efforts and also sought help from 

23


medical science (medical assistance), but with no result. They 

were disappointed. For the last time they were going to attempt 

conception using in vitro fertilisation. 

A few days before they were due to go for the procedure, the 

woman saw a black-clad young woman standing high upon a steep 

rock, holding a baby in her arms. “This baby I’m holding will be 

yours if you come and venerate me,” she told her. “Who are you?” 

asked the woman. “The All-Holy Virgin the Faneromeni,” replied 

the All-Holy Virgin and disappeared. 

The next morning, the woman told her husband about the 

dream she had seen the previous evening and begged him to find 

out where there is a Church or Monastery, dedicated to the All- 

Holy Virgin the Faneromeni, so that they could go and venerate. 

Her husband, in disbelief, reassured her telling her he would ask to 

find out where there was such a Monastery for them to visit. He 

did not believe what his wife told him and, in a few days, the event 

of the appearance of the All-Holy Virgin had been forgotten. 

A few evenings later, the black-clad All-Holy Virgin reappeared 

to the woman and told her for the second time: “Come and 

venerate me, and the baby I hold will be yours.” The next day, the 

woman asked her husband again, in tears, for them to search and 

find out where there is a Church or Monastery of the All-Holy 

Virgin Faneromeni so that they could go and venerate. Again, her 

husband did not pay particular attention and tried to reassure her. 

On the eve of the procedure the All-Holy Virgin appeared 

for the third time to the woman in her sleep and, intensely and 

sharply, told her: “Come and venerate me and the baby I hold will 

be yours, otherwise I will let it go from my hands and you will never 

have a child!” The woman, troubled, woke up and, sobbing, asked 

her husband to go and venerate the All-Holy Virgin Faneromeni. 

“Let’s go to the doctor, have the procedure and I give you my word 

that the next day, immediately, we will find out where there is the 

church of the Faneromeni and we will go and venerate,” he replied. 

24

Feast 2010, Vespers. 

Thus it happened. They went to the clinic for the in vitro 

procedure, but the woman did not want to proceed with the 

preparation for it. The doctor, who saw that she was very anxious 

and stressed, was hesitant to begin. “Let her go and venerate the 

All-Holy Virgin, let her calm down and then come back so we 

can move forward. After all, in her condition currently, there is 

nothing we can do,” he advised the husband. 

Indeed, the next day they asked and they were told about the 

Monastery of the All-Holy Virgin Faneromeni in Ierapetra. They 

came with reverence. It was the year 2000. They climbed the steep 

steps and found themselves outside the cavernous Church of the 

All-Holy Virgin. Tears of emotion and wonder ran from the eyes 

of the woman. The precipitous rocks and the surrounding area 

outside the Church was exactly the same spot in which she had 

seen, three times in her dream, the black-clad All-Holy Virgin, 

holding the babe in her maternal embrace! She knelt in front of the 

icon of the All-Holy Virgin in awe, venerated with sobs and they 

left the Monastery. 

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After a few days, the couple went to the clinic again to be 

examined by the doctor. After a while, the gynecologist announced 

that there was no need to attempt medical assistance in order to 

conceive a child. The woman was pregnant! She was right not to 

want the procedure to begin a few days ago. If she had accepted, 

she would have lost the child she was already carrying as she was 

already in the sixth week of pregnancy! They baptised the little girl 

she gave birth to at the Monastery and they gave her the name 

“Faneromeni.” 

3) A few years ago, a mother and her son, who had a mole 

next to his eye since he was a child, came to the Monastery from 

the village of Anatoli in Ierapetra. The mole grew over the years 

and festered. It often dripped pus and blood. He had to have an 

operation to remove it. When they came to the Monastery, they 

took some oil from the vigil lamp of the All-Holy Virgin and 

anointed the mole daily. In a few days it had entirely disappeared! 

4) When, recently, in 1999, the new national highway was 

being opened, exactly underneath the Monastery, a huge rock 

crushed an excavator, also trapping its operator for a while. As 

soon as the operator was rescued, a part of the mountain, where 

the work was being carried out, collapsed and buried the excavator 

entirely without, however, endangering the operator, or any of the 

other workers who were close by! 

5) On Easter day 2006, a soldier who was serving his military 

term at the air base of Ziros in Siteia came to venerate the All- 

Holy Virgin. Leaving the Monastery, he lost control of his car and 

it tumbled, falling off a precipice and landing at a depth of around 

150 metres. When the men of the fire brigade rescued him from 

the car and took him to the hospital by ambulance, they discovered 

that he only had some superficial abrasions. The young man 

survived intact through a miracle of the All-Holy Virgin while his 

car was completely destroyed! 

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6) In 1997, at the beginning of the fifteen days of the August 

fast, a group of pilgrims from Heraklion arrived very early in the 

morning at the Monastery. The family had the devout habit of 

climbing up to the Monastery on foot during the fifteen days of 

August over ten years. They set out all together from Heraklion, 

the parents, the children, the uncles and cousins, and they came to 

Faneromeni on foot! Their walk took about two days. When we 

asked them to which miraculous event of the All-Holy Virgin was 

their vow due, they told us the following: They had a ten-year old 

daughter, who suffered from leukemia. The child was subjected to 

medical exams and treatment, with none of the expected results. 

In their disappointment and sorrow, someone told them about the 

Monastery of Faneromeni and of how the grace of the All-Holy 

Virgin was so miraculous. They came to the Monastery with their 

little girl, venerated the icon of the All-Holy Virgin, took some of 

the oil, and anointed their child. When they were leaving, both 

parents, without consulting each other, made the same vow: if 

the grace of the All-Holy Virgin helped their child to get better, 

they would come from their house on foot to the Monastery, as 

many years as their daughter was old, namely ten. With the next 

treatments they did, the results were very encouraging, and thus in 

a short while, the girl was completely cured! 

7) A mother from a village of the Province of Merambellou 

came in the year 1947 with her – then – two year-old son to spend 

the fifteen days of the August fast at the Monastery. The child 

faced a serious problem since birth. He woke suddenly in the night 

with nightmares and screamed in terror. Then the poor mother 

27


vowed that she would come with her son to the All-Holy Virgin 

Faneromeni and they would stay for the fifteen days before the 

great feast of the Dormition. She believed strongly that only the 

grace of the Faneromeni could help her only child. Indeed, the 

child calmed down and was cured inside the Monastery, with the 

continuous participation in the daily Holy Services, the Divine 

Liturgies, the Vespers, the Invocations, and the Complines. The 

Lady Faneromeni cured it entirely and the child escaped from the 

terrible problem it faced. Since that time this devout woman, as an 

expression of gratitude to the All-Holy Virgin, came almost every 

year to the Monastery until her deep old age and spent the fifteen 

days of the August fast there, while her son became educated, was 

ordained to the priesthood and serves the Church of our Christ, 

worthily, until the present day. 

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Οδηγός - Παναγία Φανερωμένη ENG

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