Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I prayed last Friday at the Church of Blachernae in Constantinople, marking 1,400 years since the Akathist Hymn to the Mother of God was first chanted.
According to tradition, the hymn dedicated to the Mother of God was first chanted at the Church of Blachernae in Constantinople in 626, after the Byzantine army repelled a siege of the city.
To mark the 1,400th anniversary of the chanting of the Akathist Hymn, the Ecumenical Patriarchate decided to organise a series of religious and cultural events throughout 2026.
“Today, we have come once again to the historic Blachernae to conclude the festive cycle of these anniversary events, commemorating one of the most defining pages of the faith and history of our Nation. Here, at the Panagia of Blachernae, the City of Constantine found its salvation, not through the power of arms, but through the grace and protection of the Theotokos,” His All-Holiness emphasised.
Prayer for peace
Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew drew a connection between the historic event and the trials facing humanity today, emphasising the need to pray for peace.
“We have come to ask for this intercession of the Theotokos today. For all of you, and for the entire world, which is torn apart by war conflicts, especially in the Middle East, but also in the long-suffering Ukraine, where the deadly war and mutual dismemberment have continued for four years, despite efforts to end them.”
“Just as our ancestors, fourteen hundred years ago, faced danger not in ignorance but in prayer and vigilance, so too we today, in the midst of various trials, wars, divisions and uncertainty, are called to stand — not sitting idly by, but hurrying forward in faith, hope and love,” the Ecumenical Patriarch said.
His All-Holiness encouraged the faithful to take up their cross and bear the burdens of daily life: “We must not give ourselves over to lethargy and sleep, like the disciples of Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane.”
“Do not doubt that the Virgin Mary, as the protector of our Nation, as she has done until today, will grant us our survival in the future, here where the generations of the generations of our ancestors destined us to live and the centuries of history have placed us,” the Ecumenical Patriarch concluded.
Photo: Ecumenical Patriarchate / Nikos Papachristou
