Reflection on the Feast of the Protection of the Theotokos

Today, as we celebrate the protection of the most holy Mother of God, we also celebrate Saint Romanus, who adorned the patrimony of the Church with so many songs in honor of her and her divine Son, Jesus Christ the God-man. But there is no song without singers, and accordingly, in the Orthodox Church in America, the Holy Synod of Bishops and I have designated this Sunday “Church Musician Sunday.” So that the songs of Saint Romanus and all the holy hymnographers may continue to resound to the glory of God until the end of time, all of us are called to work together in learning and preserving the fullness of the Church’s liturgy and in fostering vocations in the realm of ecclesiastical music: vocations such as singer, choir director, ecclesiarch and typicarist, liturgical composer, hymnologist, and hymnographer. Through the mediation of the most holy Theotokos and the prayers of Saint Romanus and the synaxis of the holy hymnographers, may liturgical song flourish in our communities, now and for many years to come.