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In :''This article is about the Fifth centuryhistoric monastery. For the [[feast day]] see [[Life-Giving Spring]].'' The '''Church of the Life-Giving [[Font]] of the Theotokos''' is the latest church, built in 1835, that bears the same dedication as the shrine erected in this place between the end of the fifth and beginning of the sixth centuries, named for the [[w:Thaumaturgy|wonderworking]] [[w:Holy well|holy spring]] located there. Holy Emperor [[Leo I (emperor)|Leo I the GreatThracian]] (457-474) oversaw the building of a the church that was named in the honor honour of the Most Holy [[Theotokos]]. It was built in For almost fifteen hundred years, this sanctuary has been one of the Seven Towers district most important [[pilgrimage]] sites of Greek Orthodoxy.<ref name="JANIN">Raymond Janin (in French). ''La Géographie ecclésiastique de l'Empire byzantin. 1. Part: Le Siège de Constantinopleet le Patriarcat Oecuménique. 3rd Vol.: Les Églises et les Monastères.'' Paris: Institut Français d'Etudes Byzantines. 1953. p.232-37.</ref>

==Story Behind the Church’s CreationHistory==: ''Main article: [[Life-Giving Spring]]''The site was chosen by Leo due to a divine experience the emperor went through earlier in his life. Leo was walking in a forested area when he saw a blind man who asked him for water to quench his thirst. It was then that Leo heard a message from a voice saying that there was water deep within the woods that the man could drink. The clay from its waters would be able to heal the man’s man's eyes. The Theotokos also prophesied at this time that Leo would one day become emperor of Constantinople. Leo listened to the voice, quenched the man’s man's thirst, and allowed him to gain sight just as the Mother of God proclaimed.

This site was the place where Emperor Leo decided to build the [[church ]] in her name. The blessed water continued to work miracles [[miracle]]s for others and earned the name"The Life-Giving Spring." ==Vicissitudes of the Church==In its history, the church at the fountain had been destroyed and then rebuilt on many occasions, at the request of the [[Theotokos|Virgin Mother]]. '''Byzantine era'''<br>In Byzantine times the sanctuary was one of the most important in Constantinople. On [[Ascension]] Day, the Emperor arrived by boat to the small harbor of the [[w: “The LiveWalls_of_constantinople#Golden_Gate_and_the_Yedikule_Fortress|Golden Gate]]. He rode up to the sanctuary, where he was acclaimed by the factions, who offered him a [[cross]] and garlands. Later, he dressed in his ceremonial robe, and after receiving the [[List of Patriarchs of Constantinople|Patriarch]], the two entered the church hand-in-hand.  The [[Ascension]], the [[Wedding of Cana|Marriage at Cana]] (January 8), and the anniversary of the Miracle of Leo I on 16 August were celebrated here.<ref name="JANIN"/> Each future Empress coming to Constantinople for her wedding was received by her future spouse in the Monastery of the Spring. Due to earthquakes, the building was rebuilt in 790, under [[Irene of Athens|Empress Irene]], and after the great earthquake of 869, under [[w:Basil I|Basil I]] (867–886).<ref name="JANIN"/> On 7 September 924 Tsar [[w:Simeon I of Bulgaria|Simeon I of Bulgaria]] burned the complex, which was at once restored by [[w:Romanos I Lekapenos|Romanos I Lekapenos]] (920–944).<ref name="MAMBOURY">Ernest Mamboury. ''The Tourists' Istanbul.'' Istanbul: Çituri Biraderler Basımevi, 1953. p.208.</ref> Three years later the son of Simeon, Peter was married to Maria, the niece of Lekapenos.<ref name="JANIN"/><ref name="MAMBOURY"/> Due to its position outside the city, the monastery was often used as place of exile. In 1078 Georgios Monomachos was banished there. In 1084, Emperor [[w:Alexios I Komnenos|Alexios I Komnenos]] confined the philosopher [[w:John Italus|John Italus]] to the monastery, because of his [[w:Neoplatonism|neoplatonic]] theories.<ref name="JANIN"/> After the [[Fourth Crusade|Latin invasion of 1204]], the church was occupied by the Latin clergy and, according to Byzantine sources, this caused the end of the so called "habitual miracle" (''to synetés thauma'').<ref name="JANIN"/> In 1328 [[w:Andronikos III Palaiologos|Andronikos III Palaiologos]] used the monastery as base to attack Constantinople. Two years later, as he lay dying in the town of Didymoteicho, he drank water from the spring and recovered at once.<ref name="JANIN"/> During the [[w:Siege of Constantinople (1422)|Ottoman siege of Constantinople in 1422]], Sultan [[w:Murad II|Murad II]] camped in the sanctuary. It is unknown whether the Byzantines restored the building before the [[Fall of Constantinople|conquest of the city in 1453]]. Russian pilgrims of the fifteenth century do not mention the church, only the spring.<ref name="JANIN"/> '''Ottoman era'''<br>After serving the Christian people at Constantinople for about 1,000 years, [[Muslim]] invaders tore down the church in 1453 after taking over the city of Constantinople. The Church of the Life-giving Spring was destroyed and its building materials were used to construct the [[w:Bayezid II Mosque|Bayezid II Mosque]] for the Sultan. The church site was covered with earth and crushed stone, so that the very foundations of the church disappeared from sight. The beautiful surrounding areas were turned into a Muslim cemetery. A Turkish sentinel, placed at the ruins of the church, forbade Christians not only to gather at the site, but even to approach there.  The 16th-century French scholar [[w:Petrus Gyllius|Pierre Gilles]] writes that in 1547 the church did not exist anymore, but the sick continued to attend the spring.<ref name="JANIN"/> Little by little, the strictness of this ban eased, and Christians were permitted to build a small church there. In 1727 Metropolitan Nikodemos of [[Metropolis of Derkoi|Dercos and Neochorion]], built a small chapel above the [[Life-Giving Spring|Hagiasma]].Twenty-five steps led down into the [[chapel]], which had a window in the roof to let the light in. The holy Spring was still there, surrounded by a railing. An [[icon]], discovered in the foundations of the old church, was worshiped in the chapel. The Armenians tried to take possession of the spring, but several [[w:Firman (decree)|firmans]] secured the possession to the Greeks. The complex was controlled by Turkish guardians, who collected from the [[Pilgrimage|pilgrims]] a tax that they used for the maintenance of the prisons. Later the complex came into the possession of the [[Ecumenical Patriarchate]]. However after the onset of [[w:Greek War of Independence|Greek War of Independence]] in 1821, even this little chapel was destroyed by the [[w:Janissary|Janissaries]], who poisoned the spring and buried it under the rubble.  During the latter part of the reign of Sultan [[w:Mahmud II|Mahmoud II]] (1808-39), the Orthodox received a measure of freedom to conduct religious services. In 1833, a [[w:Firman (decree)|firman]] allowed Patriarch [[Constantius I of Constantinople]] (1830-34) to rebuild the church. For the third time, a large and prestigious church was erected above the sacred [[Life-Giving Spring|Life-giving Spring]], with work beginning in July of 1833. While workmen were clearing the ground, they uncovered the foundations of the earlier church.<ref group="note">During the excavation of the fallen church to rediscover the blessed waters, a panel was found, half-rotted away through time and dampness, on which were recorded ten miracles which occurred at the [[Life-Giving Spring|Life-giving Spring]] during the period 1824-1829. Even upon these shards of the former magnificent holy structure, the [[Theotokos]], as before, granted hearings through her grace.</ref> The Sultan allowed them to build not just a chapel, but a new and beautiful church on the foundations of the old one. Construction began on [[September 14]], 1833, and was completed on [[December 30]], 1834. On [[February 2]], 1835, with great pomp, the Ecumenical Patriarch [[Constantius II of Constantinople]] (1834-35), celebrating with 12 [[bishop]]s and an enormous flood of the faithful, [[Consecration of a church|consecrated the church]] which stands to this day, dedicating it to the Most Holy [[Theotokos]].  Nearby was built a hospital and alms-house. Even the Muslims spoke with great respect of the Life-giving Spring, and of the [[Theotokos]], who through it pours out her grace-filled power. "Great among women Holy Mary" is how they refer to the Most Holy Virgin. The water from the Life-giving Spring they call the "water of Holy Mary."  '''Modern era'''<br>On [[September 6]], 1955, during the anti-Greek [[w:Istanbul Pogrom|Istanbul Pogrom]], the church was one of the targets of the fanatic mob. The building was burned to the ground while the abbot was lynched and the 90 year-old Archimandrite Chrisanthos Mantas was assasinated by the mob.<ref>{{el icon}} Λιμπιτσιούνη, Ανθή Γ.. "''[http://invenio.lib.auth.gr/record/113326/files/LIBITSIOUNI.pdf?version=1 Το πλέγμα των ελληνοτουρκικών σχέσεων και η ελληνική μειονότητα στην Τουρκία, οι Έλληνες της Κωνσταντινούπολης της Ίμβρου και της Τενέδου]''". University of Thessaloniki. pp.23-24. Retrieved 15 October 2011.</ref> Another small chapel has been rebuilt on the site, but the church has not yet been restored to its former size. Today, in addition to the church, the compound includes the underground shrine of the Zoodochos Pigi with the holy spring which has golden fish in it. The spring still flows to this day and is considered by the faithful to have wonderworking properties. The sanctuary is directed by a titular bishop and is one of the most popular among the Orthodox of Istanbul, who visit it especially during the [[w:Easter Friday|Friday after Easter]], and on the feast day of the [[Elevation of the Holy Cross]] on [[September 14]]. On these two days, a great feast, both popular and religious takes place there.<ref name="JANIN"/> Funerals of people to be buried in the nearby cemetery are also celebrated in the church. About one kilometer south of the church an important Greek hospital is active, the “Balikli Greek Hospital Foundation” (''Balikli Rum Hastanesi Vakf''). ==List of Churches and Monasteries==The Life-Giving Spring gave origin to many churches and monasteries bearing the same name in the Greek world. Most of them were erected after the end of the Byzantine Empire. '''Monasteries'''<br>* Original monastery in Constantinople.* [http://www.malf.net/spring.htm Monastery of the Theotokos the Life-Giving Spring] -- Dunlap, California.* Monastery of the Life-Giving Spring -- [http://hellas.teipir.gr/thesis/pellana/greek/kastrig.htm Kastri], [[w:Pellana|Pellana]] municipality, [[w:Laconia|Laconia]] prefecture, Greece.<ref group="note">In Greek: ΙΕΡΑ ΜΟΝΗ ΖΩΟΔΟΧΟΥ ΠΗΓΗΣ, Καστρί, Καστόρειο, 23059, ΛΑΚΩΝΙΑΣ, 2731057238.</ref> '''Churches'''<br>* [http://www.zoodohospigi.gr/ The Life-Giving Spring] Acadimias, Athens* [http://www.theotokos-lifegiving-spring.org/ Theotokos of the Life-Giving Spring Russian Orthodox Mission] -- Bryan, Texas ==See also==*[[Life-Giving Spring]]*[[Panagia Blachernitissa]]*[[Holy water]] ==Gallery==<center><gallery> Image:Saint Mary Of The Spring (seen from north).jpg|Church of the Life-Giving Font of the Theotokos (Istanbul) as seen from the north.  Image:Church of the Life-Giving Font of the Theotokos (Plaque).jpg|The plate above the entrance to the sanctuary.  Image:Church of the Life-Giving Font of the Theotokos.jpg|The interior of the church.  Image:Saint Mary Of The Spring.jpg|The Holy well (Hagiasma) of the Church of the Life-Giving Font of the Theotokos.  </gallery></center> ==References== <div><references/></div> ==Notes==<references group="note" /> ==External links==* OCA - Feasts and Saints. ''[http://ocafs.oca.org/FeastSaintsLife.asp?FSID=32 Bright Friday. The Life Giving Spring of the Mother of God].''* The [http://www.mgrf.org/AboutUs/about.html MGR foundation]. ''[http://www.mgr.org/TheVeil.html The Miracle of the Virgin Mary at the Church of Blachernae in Constantinople on 911 AD].'' [[Category:Churches]][[Category:Churches in Turkey]]