The Protection of the Most Holy Mother of God; Holy Apostle Ananias, One of the Seventy Disciples; Our Venerable Father Roman Who Sang Sweetly (560)
Feast of the Mother of God. A day when the faithful are highly encouraged to participate in the Divine Liturgy.
Hebrews 9:1-7; Luke 10:38-42; 11:27-28
Read Hebrews 9:1-7
Glory to Jesus Christ! Glory forever!
Today we remember the Protection of the Most-Holy Theotokos over the Christians of Constantinople during a time of invasion in the 10th century. During a vigil prayer service in Blacharnae (where was preserved the Robe and Veil of the Mother of God), Our Lady appeared, along with a host of angels to St. Andrew the Fool for Christ and St. Epiphanius his disciple. These two saints saw Our Lady praying fervently to her Son with tears and placing her Omophorion of protection around those in the Church. The Christian people were saved through her protection that night.
Our reading today discusses the temple worship of the Old Covenant, and we see as Christians how the temple is fulfilled in the person of Mary, the true temple of the True Lord Jesus Christ. Instead of containing articles which were given by the Lord (the Tablets of the Law, Aaron’s blossoming rod, and the Manna from heaven) Mary contains within the temple of her body God Himself!
As we celebrate this feast of our Lady’s Protection, let us continue to turn to her during our difficult times of temptation, discouragement, or uncertainty, remembering that she is the fulfilment of the Temple and has allowed us, through her “yes” to become temples of the Holy Spirit!