Stamp dedication ceremony celebrates Budslau Icon
A first-day-of-issue dedication ceremony for the stamp "25th anniversary of the Coronation of the Icon of the Mother of God of Budslau" was held during the Budslau Fest on 1 July, BelTA has learned.
The celebrations of the miraculous Budslau Icon of the Mother of God held under the sign of the 25th anniversary of the coronation of the Icon this year was the reason for the joint project to issue an envelope with a commemorative stamp and a special stamp by the Communication and Informatization Ministry and the national mail service Belpochta,.
The first-day-of-issue dedication ceremony for the postal stamp was held near the church in the presence of guests of the Budslau Fest. It was attended by Minsk Oblast Governor Aleksander Turchin, Director General of Belpochta Svetlana Yurkevich, Metropolitan of the Minsk-Mogilev Archdiocese, Archbishop Iosif Stanevsky and the Papal Legate, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Eastern Churches of the Holy See, Archbishop Claudio Gugerotti who came to Budslau as a special envoy of Pope Francis.
For more than four centuries, pilgrims from different cities and countries have come to Budslau to worship the miraculous shrine. The celebration turned into a beautiful spiritual holiday, gathering thousands of pilgrims. The Icon has come a long way before getting to the Church of Budslau and becoming a truly national treasure of Belarus.
The miraculous Icon of the Mother of God of Budslau was crowned with papal crowns on 2 July 1998, and the Budslau church became the national sanctuary of Belarus. A dedication ceremony for the postage stamp in honor of the 400th anniversary of the revered Icon took place in 2013.
Claudio Gugerotti noted that he was happy to attend the celebrations in Budslau again. He did not miss them when he was in Belarus as an apostolic nuncio. He wished the Belarusians peace, tranquility, hope and more active youth.
The fest in Budslau (Myadel District), which takes place from 30 June to 1 July, draws pilgrims from different parts of the country. This year it celebrates the 25th anniversary of the coronation of the miraculous Icon of the Budslau Mother of God and, by decision of the Belarusian Catholic Episcopate, is held under the motto "Maria is the Queen of Belarus".
The number of pilgrims arriving at the Budslau fest increases every year. Today Budslau is an important pastoral center and a place of special worship. The Budslau Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary is an architectural monument that has the status of historical and cultural value of Belarus. Built in 1783, it has been one of the most popular Bernardine sanctuaries throughout its history.
