Feast of the Mother of God
Holy Protection of the Theotokos
The feast honors the protection and intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos. It is associated with the church of Blachernae in Constantinople and expresses the faithful’s trust in the prayers of the Mother of God.
Core account checked against Orthodox Synaxarion (Greek). Additional ecclesiastical references appear below.
Life and Witness
The Feast of the Holy Protection
The feast honors the protection and intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos. It is associated with the church of Blachernae in Constantinople and expresses the faithful’s trust in the prayers of the Mother of God.
October 28 in the Greek Tradition
The Church of Greece celebrates the Holy Protection on October 28, together with the national anniversary of Ohi Day. Other Orthodox calendars observe the feast on October 1. This website follows the Greek date for this entry.
The Liturgical Celebration
According to the Greek Synaxarion, the Holy Synod of the Church of Greece approved the common celebration on October 21, 1952. The service for this observance was composed by the Athonite monk Gerasimos Mikragiannanitis. The icon of the Holy Protection accompanies this feast as an invitation to prayer and thanksgiving.
Biographical information on this page is based exclusively on the Orthodox ecclesiastical sources listed below.
Orthodox Synaxarion (Greek)