Thousands Flock to Church to See Painting of St John the Baptist ‘Miraculously’ Sweat (Photos)

A painting of St John the Baptist has been seeping oil at Assumption Greek Orthodox Church in Homer Glen, Illinois which many has testified has healed them of their various diseases. 

Thousands have been flocking to witness the ‘sweating’ St John the Baptist painting

Pilgrims to a Greek Orthodox church outside Chicago have reported miraculous healings which they believe have been caused by an oil seeping out of a painting of St John the Baptist.

Since July, the painting at Assumption Greek Orthodox Church in Homer Glen, Illinois has been ‘sweating’ an oil parishioners believe is myrrh – one of the gifts the three wise men gave Jesus on his birth.

Reverend Sotirios ‘Sam’ Dimitriou has been collecting the oil, and then giving it out to parishioners and pilgrims alike by soaking it up with little cotton balls, the Chicago Tribune reports.

So far, he says he’s given out 5,000 samples of the oil to the faithful who have flocked to the church.

The painting seeps oil from its halo, wings, hands and beard – and not its eyes – which Dimitriou says means the icon offers joy and not sadness.

Several believers say that the oil has cured them of sicknesses, including one person who says they are now cancer free.

 

Assumption Greek Orthodox Church in Homer Glen, Illinois, US

Another man says he went to the doctor about a blockage in an artery after receiving a sample of the oil, and found that the blockage was no longer there.

Even Dimitriou himself says he’s seen an improvement in his health.

He tells the Tribune that before the oil started to flow, he would frequently pass out at the alter or in his office due to nerve damage. But now he hasn’t been hospitalized since September and he stopped taking his medication in January.

While Dimitriou admits that there may be a natural reason for the painting to seep oil, he says he’s not looking to solve that mystery.

‘When people see this, it’s just a reminder that God is still alive and still working through us and it’s a reminder that there’s still hope in the world for us,’ he said.

The oil will likely lead to more congregants than usual this weekend, as the Greek Orthodox community celebrates Easter.