The relics of St. Mary of Egypt
Founded in the 6th century AD. e. By decree of the Byzantine emperor Justinian, the monastery of St. Catherine at the foot of Mount Sinai (Mount of Moses) is one of the most visited places by pilgrims. It so happened that throughout its existence, the greats of this world patronized the monastery, and this always saved it from plunder or destruction during wars and conflicts.
In the 10th century, after the Islamization of Egypt, a mosque was built here. This “political” step at that time also prevented the destruction of the monastery. And although now the rapists of the monastery are mainly Greeks of the Orthodox faith, among the pilgrims to these places there are no less Jews and followers of Islam.
From the history of the monastery of St. Catherine
The history of the creation of the monastery contains Interesting Facts. Heeding the numerous requests of the monks who lived in the desert mountains of Egypt, Emperor Justinian (527-565) ordered his representative to build a reliable monastery on the mountain of Moses, where God gave him the 10 commandments.
But the imperial assistant, having studied the indicated place and made his calculations, disobeyed his master. He built a monastery with thick walls not at the top of the mountain, but at the foot, in the gorge. Here it was much safer to repel barbarian raids and withstand a long siege. As a result, as a reward for this “good” deed, the emperor cut off his assistant’s head, and history did not even preserve his name for posterity.
Immediately after its founding, the monastery was called the Monastery of the Transfiguration or the Monastery of the Burning Bush.
It began to be called the Monastery of St. Catherine in the 11th century, in honor of the Great Martyr Catherine (287-305), a beautiful and intelligent maiden beyond her years. She believed in Christ from a young age, converted many people around her to Christianity, and endured many troubles and persecutions throughout her life for her faith, including from her own father. After many unsuccessful attempts to return her to the worship of pagan gods, Emperor Maximin executed Catherine by beheading.
According to legend, Catherine’s body, after execution, was carried by angels to a high peak in Sinai and the monks of the Monastery of the Transfiguration, who found the remains of the saint, identified it by the ring given to Catherine by Jesus Christ. Since then, the relics of St. Catherine have been kept in the monastery church, and the monastery itself began to bear her name.
How to get to the monastery
You can get from Sharm el-Sheikh to the Monastery of St. Catherine on your own or book an excursion at any hotel or tour desk. Typically, such an excursion is “double” and includes a night ascent to Mount Moses and in the morning, after descent and breakfast, a tour of the monastery.
The excursion to the shrines and attractions of the monastery is conducted from 8 a.m. to 12 noon. Then the gate is closed for tourists.
The main shrines of the monastery
- Relics of Saint Catherine. They are the greatest shrine, and are available for worship by pilgrims every day. At certain hours, the silver reliquaries with her relics (head and right hand) are taken out from the altar of the Basilica of the Transfiguration, where they are kept permanently. After worship, the monks give each pilgrim a silver ring with an engraved heart and the inscription “ΑΓΙΑ ΑΙΚΑΤΕΡΙΝΑ.”
- The Bush of the Burning Bush, the cemetery and the crypt under the chapel of St. Tryphon with the skulls of the monks who lived in the monastery, ancient mosaics, icons and the famous Sinai Library - these shrines can be seen by tourists and pilgrims during a tour of the monastery. Each of them deserves a separate story.
The Monastery of St. Catherine was included in the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites in 2002.
Venerated - April 14 (day of repose), 5th week of Lent (Sunday).
Mary of Egypt is considered the patroness of repentant people who lead a dissolute lifestyle and a judge on Last Judgment those who have not repented.
They pray to her to deliver a person from bad passions and addictions (drunkenness, drug addiction). They pray with repentance for committing abortions.
You can pray to the Venerable Mary of Egypt for a choice the right way in life, about the gift of modesty, chastity, Christian wisdom.
We know from history that Saint Mary of Egypt was a Christian saint; she is considered the intercessor of all repentant women. In Russian Orthodox Church They greatly honor the memory of this saint and perform solemn services on April 1 (14) and in the fifth week of Great Lent (Sunday).
Saphronius of Jerusalem wrote the first life of Saint Mary of Egypt, and later Simeon Metaphrastus wrote the canon. In the Middle Ages, many stories from life Venerable Mary, were renamed Mary Magdalene.
In Jerusalem, in the Holy Church of the Holy Sepulcher, there is a small chapel in honor of St. Mary. According to legend, it was built on the very spot where she first turned to God. Many temples were built in her honor.
The Venerable Mary was born approximately in the 5th century, in Egypt. When the girl turned 12 years old, she decided to leave her father's house and become a dissolute woman. Maria went to Alexandria. One fine day, when a group of pilgrims was on their way to Jerusalem, where the celebration of the Exaltation of the Cross of the Lord was to take place, Mary decided to join them. Her motives were unclean, she was looking for men for her pleasures. When Mary of Egypt came to Jerusalem, she decided to enter the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. In front of the door to the temple, she felt some invisible force that held her and did not let her inside. At that moment, Maria realized what kind of life she led, what thoughts she lived. Falling to her knees with the realization of her fall from grace, she began to pray and ask for forgiveness from the Mother of God. After the prayers, she was able to enter the temple and bowed tirelessly Life-giving Cross. Later, when Mary left the temple, she again began to pray to the Queen of Heaven with thanks. At that moment, she heard the voice of the Virgin Mary, who told her that she needed to cross the Jordan and there she would find her peace.
Hearing the Mother of God herself address her, Mary decided to obey her will. She took communion and crossed the Jordan. Maria abandoned everything and went to live in the desert, in which she lived for 47 years, completely alone, in eternal fasting and prayers of repentance. From her memories, you can understand how difficult it was for her there. For almost 20 years she was tormented by memories of her past, dissolute life. She kept remembering how often and how much she drank wine in Egypt, and in the desert she suffered from thirst. She wanted meat all the time, she wanted to sing those dissolute songs that she sang in the world. These memories tore her apart from the inside. At these moments she fell to her knees, repented and prayed, cried and thought about the vows she had made to the Mother of God.
After all these years, all temptations were defeated by her. She became humble and submissive, she was able to cleanse her soul. The food she took from Jerusalem was gone, and all her clothes were worn out.
Meetings in the desert with Abba Zosima
First meeting:
After Mary of Egypt retired into the desert, the first and only person she met was Hieromonk Zosimus. In the charter of the Jordan monastery, from which the hieromonk came, there was a scripture that Zosimus followed. During Lent, he had to go into the desert to fast and pray. In the desert he met the Venerable Mary, who was naked. The hieromonk shared half of his clothes and asked to tell the story of her life and what brought her to the desert. Zosimus was very impressed by Mary's lifestyle and tireless prayers. Before leaving, Mary asked the hieromonk for communion in a year. But Zosima asked to wait for her on the other side of the Jordan and not cross it.
Second meeting:
Exactly a year has passed. Zosimus remembered Mary’s request, but was unable to appear on the appointed day due to illness. Only on Maundy Thursday was he finally able to come. He took the Holy Gifts and went to the bank of the Jordan. As he came closer, he saw Mary on the other side. But I didn’t see the boat next to her. To Zosima's surprise, Maria stepped on the river and walked with a firm step, as if on dry land. After communion, Mary again asked for a meeting a year later. And again she stepped onto the water and crossed the Jordan. She went back into the desert.
Meeting three:
A year later, remembering Mary’s request, Zosim returned to the shore. As he approached, he saw Mary lying on the sand. Nearby he saw the inscription that Maria had left for him. She asked to be buried in this place and to pray for the salvation of her soul. Confused, the hieromonk realized that after he gave her communion and she was miraculously transported to the other side, she died. Nearby he saw a lion, to whom he turned with a request to dig a grave. After all, he didn’t have an instrument with him. The lion complied with the request and dug the grave with its claws. So the body of Mary of Egypt was buried forever in the sands of the Jordan River.
Upon returning to the monastery, Hieromonk Zosim told the entire monastery about the hermit from the desert.
In the fifth week of Great Lent (Sunday), people ask for deliverance from bad habits and fornication. They ask for repentance for the wrong path, for abortions. They ask for guidance on the true path, for chastity and modesty.
The Sretensky Monastery was built and decorated. It is remarkable that the Venerable Mary of Egypt herself helped in many ways: Tsarina Maria Ilyinichna Miloslavskaya (1624-1669), wife of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich the Quiet, considered the Venerable Saint her Heavenly patroness, and the only church dedicated to her in those years in Moscow was located in the Sretensky Monastery . From the moment of the wedding of Maria Miloslavskaya and Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich in 1648 until the death of their son, Tsar Ivan Alekseevich, in 1696, that is, almost half a century, the celebration of the saint’s memory in our monastery was a real public holiday: boyars, metropolitans, and merchants came here , ordinary people and the patriarch himself. The Venerable Mary of Egypt brought them all here.
By her mercy, the saint decided to come to us herself - with her relics. It happened like this. The famous Russian diplomat and Duma clerk Emelyan Ignatievich Ukraintsev helped the Jerusalem Patriarch Dosifei in negotiations with the Turkish Sultan Mustafa, and for this invaluable help the Patriarch blessed Emelyan Ignatievich with a precious gift - the holy relics of Mary of Egypt in a silver ark.
The Lord and the venerable saint herself put it in their hearts to give it to the owner of the shrine as a gift to the Sretensky Monastery, which he did with all his heart in 1707. The ark with the holy relics of the Venerable Mary of Egypt was placed in the Vladimir Cathedral in the most prominent place - in front of the most revered image - in front of Vladimir icon Mother of God 1514, - to the left of the royal gates. Muscovites believed that the holy relics of the saint possessed a special power that protected from evil.
In 1812, the abbot of the Sretensky monastery took church relics to Suzdal to save them from looting, but the ark with holy relics remained in the cathedral on a lectern - in full view of the praying people, in order to prevent panic and despondency among Muscovites. Several ascetic monks also did not leave the monastery and continued to pray. The French robbed the monastery, but the ark with the holy relics was miraculously preserved from the robbers and remained one of the main Moscow shrines.Muscovites believed that the holy relics of the Venerable Mary of Egypt possessed a special power that protected from evil
In 1843, our monastery was given the relics of the holy noble prince Michael of Tver, which were placed in the ark with the holy relics of the Venerable Mary of Egypt. In 1844, the merchant’s daughter, Maria Dmitrievna Lukhmanova, donated funds to our monastery for the construction of a new silver ark for her relics Heavenly patroness. The new ark was embossed with images of two saints, whose relics rested in it.
The fate of the old and new arks turned out to be different. The old one was kept in the monastery sacristy until 1920, until it was taken to the museum, which saved it from destruction and melting down, since the Bolsheviks melted down shrines without caring about their value. Then the old ark ended up in the collections of the Anti-Religious Museum of Art in the Donskoy Monastery, from where in 1935 it was taken to the State Historical Museum, where it remains to this day. The new silver ark was confiscated along with other church valuables in 1922; the fate of the holy relics from it is unknown.
The date of the start of the demolition of the Church of St. Mary of Egypt - May 6, 1930 - was noted by the architect Pyotr Dmitrievich Baranovsky (1892-1984) in his diary as tragic for Russian culture.
The revival of the monastery also renewed the veneration of the Venerable Mary of Egypt in our monastery. In 2000, a northern chapel was built in the Sretensky Cathedral in honor of this great saint. On March 25, 2004, the abbot of the Sretensky Monastery, Archimandrite Tikhon (Shevkunov), now Metropolitan of Pskov and Porkhov, brought to our monastery a great shrine - the ark with the relics of the Venerable Mary of Egypt. It was given to us by the brethren of the Greek monastery of St. Nicholas on the island of Andros. In his sermon, the father governor said that the relics of the saint, which were before the revolution main shrine monastery, have now returned to their place.
On April 15, 2009, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus' performed the rite of small consecration of the chapel in the name of the Venerable Mary of Egypt. Every week a prayer service is held here with an akathist to the saint right in front of her relics.In 2004, the relics “returned to the monastery”: they were donated by the brethren of the monastery of St. Nicholas on Fr. Andros
The Venerable Mary of Egypt is a great saint, whose amazing life we hear every year during Great Lent. Out of habit, listening to this reading for many years, we take a number of moments related to the life of this great ascetic for granted, without really thinking about them. We invite you to look at them in more detail. 
Lion helping St. Zosima dig a hole to bury the body of St. Maria
The lion, the king of beasts, with his front paws dug a hole large enough to bury the body of the Venerable Mary of Egypt. In a similar way, lions served St. Gerasim of Jordan, and in Russia Venerable Seraphim Sarovsky fed the bear by hand. Bears also loved to come to St. Sergius Radonezh.
Do you know what the Venerable Mary ate in the desert?It is known that she took only three small loaves of bread with her into the desert. This meager supply lasted the saint for several years! And then only the poor vegetation of the desert served her as food.
The lion, the king of beasts, with his front paws dug a hole large enough to bury the body of the Venerable Mary of EgyptHowever, the saint did not really need this food either; she was satisfied with spiritual food - prayer and the grace of the Holy Spirit! Do you know that Mary of Egypt, before leaving for the desert, betrayed herself to the Mother of God, calling Her her Surety?
“Be my faithful Guarantor before Your Son, that I will no longer defile my body with the uncleanness of fornication, but, looking at the Tree of the Cross, I will renounce the world and its temptations and go where You, the Guarantor of my salvation, will lead me” (Hieromartyr Sergius Mechev) .
Did you know that the incident where the Reverend was unable to enter the church shows, that “that royal region into which we enter so easily is the Church, and simply the world itself, created by God, remained pure from evil, although it submitted, enslaved to evil because of us” (Metropolitan Sourozhsky Anthony(Bloom)).
When the Venerable Mary went into the desert beyond the Jordan, she was 29 years oldDid you know that Saint Mary received Holy Communion only twice in her life?
The first time - immediately before leaving for the desert, in the Church of John the Baptist on the Jordan; the second time - before her death, Abba Zosima gave her communion, and in order to receive communion, she walked to the elder through the Jordan, as if on earth.
Do you know at what age Mary went into the desert?When the saint went into the desert beyond the Jordan, she was 29 years old.
Jordan, Wadi Rum desert Did you know that Mary knew Holy Bible by heart, although she was illiterate and never had the text of Scripture with her? Having heard Zosima that he was remembering the words of Scripture, from Moses and the prophets, and from the books of psalms, he said to her: “Have you, madam, studied psalms and other books?” She, hearing this, smiled and said to him:
The church where Mary could not enter is the porch of the Church of the Resurrection of Christ in Jerusalem“Believe me, man, that I have not seen another person since I crossed the Jordan, except for your face now, I have not seen any beasts or any other animals, I have never studied books, I have not even heard anyone else singing or reading, but the Word of God, living and active, Himself teaches the understanding of man.”
Do you know who taught the desert dweller Mary the Holy Scriptures?
Spirit of God. “The Savior’s promise to the disciples was fulfilled: “The Comforter, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you everything.” He taught blessed Mary, inhabiting her and O she's alive. And other terrible miracles were performed by Mary of Egypt by the power of God, who dwelt in her” (St. Nicholas of Serbia).
Do you know where the very temple into which the Venerable Mary could not enter is located?This is a chapel in the vestibule of the Church of the Resurrection of Christ in Jerusalem. 
Church of the Resurrection, Jerusalem
Do you know that the relics of the Venerable Mary exist and have been preserved to this day?
The relics of the saint were found by the brethren of the monastery from which Abba Zosima came. “Having arrived at the monastery, he [Zosima], without hiding anything that he saw and heard, told all the monks about the Venerable Mary. Everyone was amazed at the greatness of God and decided with fear, faith and love to honor the memory of the saint and celebrate the day of her repose.” In Moscow, for example, you can venerate the relics of the saint in the Sretensky Monastery.
I.S. Aksakov wrote a poem based on the life of the saintDo you know why the Orthodox Church established in Lent remember the life of the Venerable Mary of Egypt?
We re-read the life of the saint again and again every Great Lent as an example to follow in abstinence and the fight against sin and passions. Many holy ascetics were inspired by the example of this holy wife, who courageously endured the feat of ascetic work.
Other facts about St. Mary of Egypt
– The Venerable Mary was 76 years old when she met Abba Zosima. At the age of 12, she left home, lived a dissolute life for another 17 years, and then spent 47 years in repentance in the desert. She was originally from Egypt, but left home for Alexandria.
- 17 of all 47 years spent by the saint in the desert, she incessantly “struggled with her crazy passions, like with fierce beasts.” This struggle was cruel and unbearable, which could only be endured with the great help of God.
– Orthodox thinker of the 19th century I.S. Aksakov wrote a poem based on the life of the Venerable Mary of Egypt.
– “When you read the life of Mary of Egypt, you are convinced how truthfully the teachings of the holy fathers, at least in the presentation of John Climacus, truly depict human soul, and how natural spiritual life is in general” (martyr Sergius Mechev).
The Monastery of St. Catherine is the oldest Christian monastery in the world, located in Egypt, on the Sinai Peninsula at an altitude of 1570 meters, at the foot of Mount Sinai.
Named after Saint Catherine, who was martyred for preaching the Christian faith.
The Monastery of St. Catherine was founded in the 4th century by Greek monks, next to the Chapel of the Burning Bush, erected at the biblical site of the presentation of the Ten Commandments to Moses. In the 6th century the monastery was rebuilt as a fortress.
The Monastery of St. Catherine is one of the most revered shrines of the Orthodox Church. And although it is located far beyond the borders of our country, true Christians still go there, worship and turn with prayers and requests to St. Catherine, whose relics are in this holy place.
Many of our compatriots vacation in Egyptian resorts, including Sharm El Sheikh. Of course, the warm sun, blue water of Nayama Bay, clean sandy beach and other resort activities take up your time.
But few vacationers know that not far from Sharm El Sheikh, in the valley, in the oasis of Wadi Firan, between the mountains of Moses, Catherine and Safsaf, at the foot of Mount Moses, or according to the biblical Mount Sinai, at an altitude of 1570 meters, there is one one of the most revered Christian shrines.
In the 3rd century, near the Burning Bush, hermit monks began to settle in the caves of Mount Sinai. They led a solitary lifestyle and only gathered on holidays to perform divine services together near the Burning Bush. This place was revered not only by monks, but also by high-ranking people of that time.
The mother of Emperor Constantine, Saint Helena, at the request of the monks, in 324 ordered the construction of a small chapel on this site - a chapel, around which over time a monastery was built, which was called the “Monastery of the Burning Bush”. The inhabitants of the monastery were Orthodox Greeks. In many writings it is also referred to as the “Monastery of the Transfiguration”. Since the monastery was often subject to raids by nomadic tribes, the Byzantine emperor Justinian I in 537 transformed this monastery into a real fortress. High fortress walls with loopholes were erected around the monastery, and inside, in addition to the monks, a military garrison was located to protect Holy place. In this form, the monastery-fortress has survived to this day.
At the time when these events took place, the main religion in Egypt was paganism. Christianity was just beginning to enter the consciousness of people. It made its way through with great difficulty. The champions of paganism, especially the imperial elite, their confidants and pagan priests were ardent opponents of Christianity and persecuted preachers of the Christian faith in every possible way. But, no matter what, those who knew and accepted the Christian faith, sometimes even at the cost of their lives, brought it to people.
One of these enlighteners was Dorothea, the daughter of one of the noble people of Alexandria, born at the end of the 3rd century. A beautiful, intelligent and educated girl, having met a hermit monk, learned from him about Jesus Christ and the existence of the true Christian faith. She believed in Jesus Christ as the Son of God and joyfully accepted this faith, was baptized and named Catherine.
There are many beliefs about her life. But they all agree that Catherine was betrothed to Christ and devoted her entire life to preaching the Christian faith. She even tried to convert the co-emperor of Byzantium, Maximinus, to Christianity. For refusing to renounce Christianity, Catherine was tortured and executed. The body of the tortured Catherine was buried in the Sinai mountains. Three centuries later, the monks found her remains and transferred them to the temple at the monastery. Catherine was canonized, and her relics are still kept in the monastery in the main monastery church. The mountain where the remains of St. Catherine were found has since then been named after her. And in the 11th century, when all Christian humanity learned about the burial place of St. Catherine, the monastery of the Burning Bush became a place of pilgrimage for a huge number of believers. And then the Burning Bush Monastery was renamed the Monastery of St. Catherine in her honor.
The Monastery of St. Catherine is revered not only by Christians; its holiness is also recognized by other faiths. That is why, throughout the history of Egypt during New Era the monastery was never damaged or looted. When the Sinai Peninsula was captured by the Arabs, the Prophet Muhammad himself patronized the monastery. A Muslim mosque was erected on the territory of the monastery, which became a guard symbol against Muslim raids and practically saved it from destruction. During the Crusades, to protect pilgrims, the knightly order of St. Catherine was created at the monastery, and a Catholic church was built in the monastery itself. And even when the Ottoman Empire conquered Egypt in the 16th century, the Turkish Sultan retained the special position of Archbishop of Sinai and did not interfere in the affairs of the monastery. In the 18th century, when Egypt was conquered by France, Napoleon Bonaparte in 1798 ordered the restoration of the damaged northern part of the monastery, and he himself paid all the costs.
During its existence, the Monastery of St. Catherine suffered many troubles. More than once the monastery was on the verge of ceasing to exist. Russia played a big role in its preservation. Back in 1375, due to the difficult situation, the Sinai Monastery turned to Moscow for alms for the monastery. Since 1390, in the Moscow Kremlin, in the Annunciation Cathedral, an icon depicting the Burning Bush, brought from the Monastery of St. Catherine as a gift to the Russian people, has been kept. And since then, Russia has supported the Monastery of St. Catherine in every possible way, sending large gifts there. And in 1558, Russian Tsar Ivan the Terrible, in addition to gifts, donated to the monastery a specially made gold-woven coverlet on the relics of St. Catherine, which is still kept in the monastery. In 1559, the embassy of Ivan IV the Terrible visited the Sinai Monastery. This is how Russian envoys were greeted at the Sinai Monastery.
In 1605, a very difficult year for the monastery, Archimandrite Joasaph of Sinai visited Moscow for the mercy of the Russian Tsar and took away rich gifts from Russia. In gratitude, since then the Russian Tsar has been considered the second creator of the Sinai monastery. In 1619, together with the Jerusalem Patriarch Theophan, Joasaph, already Archbishop of Sinai, participated in a prayer service in the Trinity-Sergius Lavra before the shrine of St. Sergius of Radonezh.
After this, large donations from the Russian tsars were constantly sent to the Sinai monastery. And in 1630, the Russian Tsar granted the Sinai Monastery a charter for the right to constantly, once every four years, come to Moscow for alms, which was provided until the 1917 revolution.
.jpg)
In 1687, the Sinai monastery turned to Russia to take the monastery under its protection. On behalf of Tsars Peter and John and Princess Sophia, a letter was issued to the monastery where it was written: “in the state’s charity, the holy mountain and monastery of the Most Holy Theotokos of the Burning Bush for the unity of our pious Christian faiths you were pleased to accept.” The Sinai monks were presented with rich gifts, among which was a silver shrine for the relics of St. Catherine. According to the chronicle, the shrine was made with the personal money of Princess Sophia.
Almost all Russian tsars, starting from the 17th century, constantly provided assistance to the monastery of St. Catherine, sending donations there, often from personal savings. Thus, Russian Emperor Alexander II in 1860 gave the monastery a golden shrine for the relics of St. Catherine, and in 1871, by his decree, nine bells were cast in Russia for the new bell tower of the monastery.
For more than 14 centuries, the Monastery of St. Catherine has been one of the most famous and authoritative educational and cultural centers of Christianity. This is the center of the Sinai Church, which, in addition to the monastery itself, has several so-called farmsteads. 3 of them are located in Egypt, and 14 outside of Egypt. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, such farmsteads existed in Russia, in Kyiv, Tiflis and Bessarabia.
The abbot of the monastery is the Archbishop of Sinai. From 1973 to the present, this is Archbishop Damian. And although the residence of the Archbishop of Sinai is not in the monastery itself, but in the Juwani monastery compound in Cairo, he prefers to spend most of his time in the monastery. In his absence, the monastery is governed by his viceroy, the so-called “dikey,” who is elected by the monastic brethren and approved by the archbishop himself.
Well, the monastery itself is a whole small town, which includes more than a hundred buildings. But the basis of the monastery is the Church of the Transfiguration. The temple was built of granite in the form of a basilica with 12 columns, according to the number of months in the year. Between the columns in special niches the remains of saints are stored, and above each column there is an icon with their image. The walls and columns, as well as the roof and even the inscriptions, have been preserved since the time of Justinian. Iconostasis and everything interior decoration preserved from the 17th - 18th centuries.
On the apse of the temple there is an ancient mosaic depicting the Transfiguration of Jesus surrounded by disciples, all of which has been preserved unchanged since the construction of the temple.
The entrance doors to the temple were made of Lebanese cedar by skilled Byzantine craftsmen more than 1,400 years ago. Above the entrance there is a Greek inscription “Behold the gate of the Lord; the righteous will enter into them.” And the doors of the vestibule have been preserved since the times of the Crusaders, from the 11th century. In the altar of the temple there are two arks with the relics of St. Catherine. Behind the altar of the temple is the Chapel of the Burning Bush. In the chapel, the throne is located above the roots of the Kupina, and the bush itself was transplanted a few meters from the chapel, where it still grows today. The altar of the chapel is not hidden by the iconostasis and all pilgrims can see the place where Kupina grew, this is a hole in the marble slab, covered with a silver shield. Pilgrims are allowed to enter the chapel, but only without shoes.
There are 12 more chapels in the monastery, but they are open only on days church holidays. Near the Church of the Transfiguration, the well of the Prophet Moses has been preserved, from which water is still taken, although there are several other wells with holy water in the monastery.
Another attraction of the monastery is the gallery of ancient icons, twelve of which are considered the rarest. They were written back in the 6th century. In addition, the monastery has a huge library containing several thousand ancient scrolls, manuscripts, manuscripts and books in Coptic, Greek, Arabic and Slavic languages. A larger quantity is kept only in the Vatican.
Outside the walls of the monastery there is a garden and vegetable garden in which vegetables and various fruit trees grow for the monks living in the monastery. In the garden there are also olive trees, from which olive oil is also made here for the needs of the monastery. The monks themselves take care of all this. You can get to the garden from the monastery through an ancient underground passage.
.jpg)
The Monastery of St. Catherine is visited daily by hundreds of pilgrims and tourists from all over the world. There is a small hotel for pilgrims at the monastery. There are also several church shops where you can buy church items, books, candles and souvenirs. Tourists prefer to stay in hotels in the small town of Sainte-Catherine, located near the monastery; there are several small restaurants and shops and a shopping center.
You can come here on your own by taxi or bus. You can also come with a tour, which is offered in many hotels both in Sharm El Sheikh and in any other city. The time for visiting the monastery is any day from 9 am to 12 pm. You need to keep in mind that clothes for visiting the monastery should be modest, no shorts or T-shirts. For women, a headscarf and long sleeves are a must.
After the service, believers are allowed to visit the relics of St. Catherine, and at the exit, everyone who has visited the relics is given modest silver rings with an image of a heart and the inscription “St. Catherine.”
Tourists are usually shown only the front part of the cathedral and the Burning Bush. However, monks treat Orthodox Christians with great attention. Some are allowed to see the Burning Bush Chapel, gallery and monastery library. But in any case, even if you can’t even see everything, the visit to St. Catherine’s Monastery itself will be remembered for the rest of your life. God bless you.