Alexandra International

GALAKTOTROPHUSA – MELKOPITATELNICA - Nursing Mother of God, Milk Giver, Gal
Biblically it is based on the passage from St Luke’s Gospel where a woman in the crowd cried out “Blessed is the womb that bore you and the breasts you sucked.”  To which Jesus responded “Blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it.”
The icon shows the acceptance of God’s will by Mary (in becoming the Mother of God) and metaphorically  affirms the Church as “mother” who  nourishes the faithful (Her children) through the Holy Mysteries and the life of the community.
While a rare subject, it appears in both iconography and Western religious art.    The Virgin though this icon patroness for nursing mothers.  The icon is thought to be Greek in origin and icon is particularly popular among Greeks, Russians and Southern Italians.