The Protection of Mary in the Akathist to The Theotokos – Section 4
This week we continue the series exploring the Akathist to the Theotokos. And this time we witness the Nativity of Christ within the Akathist, which highlights the protection of the Theotokos! If you missed the first three articles, be sure to read them first! Start with https://thebyzantinelife.com/akathist-to-the-theotokos/ and then follow it up with https://thebyzantinelife.com/ineffable-akathist/. Finally there is https://thebyzantinelife.com/akathist-john-baptist/.
The Fourth Set of Prayers of The Akathist to the Theotokos
Kontakion 4: Filled with a storm of contradictory thoughts, the wise Joseph was greatly disturbed: until then, he had seen you a virgin, and now he suspected you of secret guilt, All Blameless One! Learning that your conception was of the Holy Spirit, he cried out: Alleluia!
Oikos 4: The shepherds heard the angels singing hymns of praise to the coming of Christ in the flesh. And running to him as to a shepherd, they saw him as a spotless Lamb grazing at Mary’s breast. They sang a hymn to her and said:
Rejoice, O Mother of Lamb and Shepherd;
Rejoice, O Fold of rational sheep!
Hail, O Protection against unseen foes;
Hail, O Key to the doors of paradise!
Rejoice, for the heavenly rejoice with the earthly;
Rejoice, for the earthly meet the heavenly in song!
Hail, the unsilenced Voice of apostles;
Hail, the undaunted Might of martyrs!
Rejoice, O steadfast Foundation of faith;
Rejoice, O shining Emblem of grace!
Hail, O you through whom death was despoiled;
Hail, O you through whom we were clothed with glory!
(Refrain): Rejoice, O Bride and Maiden ever pure! /OR/ Rejoice O Unwedded Bride!
*Note, I alternated the verses beginning with hail or rejoice to give a taste for how each sounds. When praying, however, you should either begin each line with Rejoice, or begin each line with Hail. These are simply two translations of the same word. I typically use rejoice, as it is more common to Byzantine translations of the “Hail Mary” prayer, as well as I find the two syllable word to be more effective for the tones.
Akathist – The Protection of St. Joseph – Kontakion 4
Filled with a storm of contradictory thoughts, the wise Joseph was greatly disturbed: until then, he had seen you a virgin, and now he suspected you of secret guilt, All Blameless One! Learning that your conception was of the Holy Spirit, he cried out: Alleluia!
In this Kontakion we have the ever silent St. Joseph speak a single word: Alleluia. We can only wonder at how St. Joseph must have felt, when Mary related the message of the angel. After Mary, St. Joseph was the first asked to believe the unbelievable – in a virgin conception of God’s own son. We are so used to news of the annunciation. It is easy to forget how unimaginable, how incredible, how inconceivable this news is! What is it like to hear this news for the first time?
We can also consider if there are any articles of our faith that we find difficult to believe even now. What more evidence do we need to give our assent to the faith? Can we, like St. Joseph, trust in the word of God alone?
And if we can’t do that, do we not at least owe it to God to study the words of the Church Fathers and Theologians on whatever sticking point bothers us, so that we can appreciate the truths that God has revealed to us?
Oikos 4 – The Protection of the Shepherd and His Mother
The Introduction
The beginning of the Oikos again gives us the perspective for the further lines of the prayer:
The shepherds heard the angels singing hymns of praise to the coming of Christ in the flesh. And running to him as to a shepherd, they saw him as a spotless Lamb grazing at Mary’s breast. They sang a hymn to her and said:
So in this Oikos we hear from the simple shepherds, those to whom the Good News of Christ’s birth was first heralded. They are among the lowly in Jewish society. And also they are the ones chosen to honour and greet the newborn king!
Rejoice, O Mother of Lamb and Shepherd;
Here we remember that Jesus is both the lamb and the shepherd. He is the pascal lamb of God, sacrificed for us in atonement for our sins. He is also our shepherd, who knows us and loves us, and calls us each by name. Both as a lamb and shepherd, Christ provides protection to us. And so does Mary as His (and our) mother. Indeed, the main imagery of this part of the akathist, sung by the shepherds, is that of protection. Rejoice, O mother of our protection! And Rejoice, You who are our protection!
Rejoice, O Fold of rational sheep!
A sheepfold is the pen for sheep. It is where they are kept safe from harm. Mary is our sheepfold. When we trust ourselves to her care, we are kept safe from spiritual harm. Indeed, if we consecrate ourselves fully to her, she can protect us in every possible way. I have quoted this in an article before, but it is so beautiful I feel it worth repeating here. From the Admirable Heart of Mary, part 4, chapter 5, paragraph 8:
“Our Lady possesses a special knowledge of those who are most devoted to her; she knows God’s designs concerning them, the road they should follow to reach God, the state and dispositions of their souls, all the accidents that befall them, all their possible perils, the pains they suffer, interiorly and exteriorly. She knows the temptations that assail them, the evil schemes of their enemies and all their corporeal and spiritual needs, so that she may assist, protect, defend and strengthen her faithful followers, obtain from her divine son the help they need most, and be herself the best of mothers to them. From this you can estimate the happiness and advantages enjoyed by those who make themselves worthy to be numbered among the true children of Our Lady’s loving heart.”
Hail, O Protection against unseen foes;
Mary is our “weapon” against our unseen enemies, she is the “torment” of the invisible foes. This hearkens back to the second part of the akathist where we call her “wound ever-hurting to the demons.” We thank the Theotokos, recognizing her great power to protect us against our enemies that we cannot see.
Hail, O Key to the doors of paradise!
The Theotokos brings Christ to us. Through her obedience to God, undoing the disobedience of Eve, she opens the gates of Paradise to humanity. So we honour her for unlocking the heavens for us. For bringing God down to Earth. And for participating with her presence at Christ’s crucifixion, with her heart nailed to the cross with her Son.
We often contemplate the wounds and pain of Christ. But do we consider the pain felt by a mother, seeing her Son, who is God, perfect and innocent, deserving of worship and adoration rather than this cruelty, upon the cross. St. John Eudes explains that the pain was so great that the Theotokos would have died in that moment, had God not preserved her. Although Christ’s sacrifice alone is sufficient for our salvation, God willed not to do it alone, but with His mother. Just as He willed to come down to earth through her, in His conception and nativity.
And so we honour Mary because God chose to honour her and work with and through her in all these amazing things.
Rejoice, for the heavenly rejoice with the earthly; Rejoice, for the earthly meet the heavenly in song!
The shepherd join in with the angels in celebrating Christ’s birth. We too rejoice with the heavenly, and together sing the praises of our God. Although the shepherds are referring to joining with the angels at the event of the nativity, we join the angels in song and rejoicing at every Divine Liturgy!
Hail, the unsilenced Voice of the apostles;
While we witness very few words from Mary in the gospels, those she does speak are so much with meaning. And none so much as her Fiat. Her yes to God is the message of the gospels. This reminds us to allow Christ to grow in us through the ministry of the Church and in the holy mysteries. This is why her Fiat is the unsilenced voice of the apostles.
We too need to say yes to God. Where we struggle, let’s turn to the Theotokos and ask for her aid in saying our own yes.
Another thing to note about this title is how in the traditional societies of the time, women did not have a voice. Usually the father or husband of a woman spoke for her. And yet in the scriptures we witness God continually raising up women (as types of the Theotokos) who speak either as Prophetesses or even as Judges of Israel. In the Theotokos this is reversed again, as her speaking is above even the apostles.
And so the apostles, rather than speaking for her, serve her in their speech. Rather than eliminating her voice, they spread her voice to the whole world.
Hail, the undaunted Might of martyrs! Rejoice, O steadfast Foundation of faith; Rejoice, O shining Emblem of grace!
Just as Mary is our protection against unseen foes, so she is the invincible courage of the martyrs. The passion-bearers who remain steadfast through their ordeals have the graces from the hands of the Theotokos to thank, and so we honour her as the strong support of the martyrs.
Christ is conceived in us in the same way He came down to earth the first time. It is the act of the Theotokos working with the Holy Spirit. And so the Theotokos, together with the Holy Spirit, acts as the firm foundation of our faith. Through her (and the Holy Spirit) we become icons of Christ to the world. And she is also the radiant token of grace, a masterpiece reflecting the beauty of God, the highest of all creation. And who do we hear this from? The mouth of shepherds. Such as it pleases God to raise up the lowly of this world.
Hail, O you through whom death was despoiled; Hail, O you through whom we were clothed with glory!
These lines bring us back from the image of the nativity to the crucifixion. Mary’s participation in the life, death, and resurrection of Christ is celebrated now, even at His birth. The Nativity of Christ is the first labour of the Theotokos. A beautiful, immaculate, and painless birth, like light passing through glass. The crucifixion of Christ is the second labour of Theotokos. This labour brought unimaginable pain, but also brought forth her motherhood of the whole church. And so we can say that through her death was despoiled. And through her we were clothed with glory!
The Byzantine Life
Thank you for checking out this week’s article. As we continue to enjoy the Easter season, consider checking out our article on the Feast of the Ascension.
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