Wonderworking Kykkos Icon Brought Out for First Time in 35 Years in Cyprus

Procession with the Kykkos Miraculous Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos. Photo: Orthodoxia News Agency

NICOSIA — The ancient Kykkos Monastery held a rare all-night vigil and public procession of its revered Icon of the Merciful Theotokos on Nov. 21–22, following a decision by the Brotherhood of the Holy Basilica and Stavropegic Monastery. The vigil, offered for the end of Cyprus’s prolonged drought, drew thousands of faithful from across the island.

As reported by Orthodoxia News Agency, the service began Friday evening with Vespers and continued through Salutations, Midnight Office, Matins, and Divine Liturgy, concluding Saturday afternoon with the procession of the miraculous icon to the historic site of Throni. The event was presided over by Met. Nikiforos of Kykkos and Tylliria, joined by Met. Isaiah of Tamassos, the monastery’s fathers, and a large contingent of clergy.

The icon’s exit from the monastery — only the fourth in its recorded history — was described as a moment of profound spiritual significance. In times of severe drought, residents have turned to the ‘rain-bearing’ Virgin of Kykkos, with Ottoman-era processions and well-known miracles attributed to the icon. Her intercession has delivered redemptive rains in every generation.

Historical accounts, including Ottoman documents and testimony from foreign travelers, recount repeated processions of the icon during periods of drought, often followed by sudden rainfall. One such episode described by Met. Nikiforos involved an Ottoman satrap who threatened to destroy the icon if rain did not come — only for torrential storms to break out as he ascended toward the monastery.

The last exit of the icon took place 35 years ago, in December 1990, when it was brought to Throni to pray for relief from another devastating drought.

Previously, UOJ reported that the Church of Cyprus had launched island-wide support for large families.

Read also