“Today the faithful celebrate the feast with joy illumined by your coming, O Mother of God. Beholding your pure image, we fervently cry to you: “Encompass us beneath the precious veil of your protection; deliver us from every form of evil by entreating Christ, your Son and our God that He may save our souls.” (troparion of the feast)
On Sunday, October 1, 2023, the faithful of the parish of the Protection of the Mother of God in Houston, Texas, celebrated their feast day. Just as it does every year, this celebration brings with it much joy. On Saturday, at sunset, the Vespers was celebrated along with Artoklasia. At the end of the service, Father Iulian Anitei told the audience the story of the miracle of the apparition of Our Lady in the Church of Blachernae on the morning of October 1, 911. Our Lady was seen by St. Andrew the Fool for Christ and his disciple Epiphanius, surrounded by apostles, saints, and martyrs, the most famous being St. John the Baptist and St. John the Goldenmouth. The two of them who were blessed with this wonderful sight also heard the humble words of prayer of the Mother of God: "O Heavenly King, accept all those who pray to You and call on my name for help. Do not let them go away from my icon unheard. And where the remembrance of my name is made, in that place sanctify and glorify those who glorify Thee and the prayers of those who with love glorify me, Thy Mother; and receive their petitions and deliver them from all their needs and evils."
On Sunday morning, the service began with the Akathist of the Holy Protection, the Orthros, and the Holy and Divine Liturgy. After the reading of the Gospel, Father Iulian summarized the history and the meaning of the feast of the Holy Protection and outlined the content of the Gospel of the 19th Sunday after Pentecost. The feast ended with a fraternal meal enjoyed by all the faithful participants.
“Today the faithful celebrate the feast with joy illumined by your coming, O Mother of God. Beholding your pure image we fervently cry to you: “Encompass us beneath the precious veil of your protection; deliver us from every form of evil by entreating Christ, your Son and our God that He may save our souls.”
