On January 19, 2024, Orthodox Christians participated in the annual March for Life in Washington, D.C., as part of a delegation led by four bishops representing three different jurisdictions.
For decades, this march against the practice of abortion, which was first held in the U.S. capital in 1974, has brought together many Orthodox Christians.
This year's delegation was led by Bishop John of Worcester and New England (Antiochian Patriarchate), Metropolitan Tikhon, Primate of the Orthodox Church in America (OCA), Bishop Andrew (OCA) and Bishop Theophanes (Administrator of the Albanian Diocese of the United States of America of the Patriarchate of Constantinople), according to the U.S. Conference of Canonical Orthodox Bishops.
The day was supposed to begin for Orthodox Christians with the Divine Liturgy on the occasion of the Feast of the Epiphany of the Lord at the PCA's St. Nicholas Cathedral in Washington, D.C., but it was canceled due to bad weather and reduced visibility on the roads.
The rally before the march began with a prayer offered by Bishop John: "O Heavenly Father, good Comforter and Lord Jesus Christ; Creator of all things, who knew us in our mother's womb and arranged the world for our salvation. Protect your infants, born and unborn; guide their parents; and show us the way we should walk today and every day. day..."
The procession began at one o'clock in the afternoon. Its participants marched along Constitution Avenue to the Supreme Court building, where prayers were offered for the victims of abortion.
Metropolitan Tikhon also proclaimed Sunday, January 21, as the Week of Sanctity of Life in the PCA. His address to the clergy, monastics and faithful of the PCA reads:
"Beloved children of God,
As we celebrate this year's Sanctity of Life Week, there will be much discussion about the 'right to life'. Of course, we Orthodox Christians believe that certain rights, including the right to life, should be respected, enshrined in law, and protected by civil authority. But human life is something more valuable than just a right: it is a divine gift.
"This is the inheritance from the Lord: children; his reward is the fruit of the womb," as the psalmist says (Psalm 126:3). We are called to recognize every human life from conception to the moment of natural death as a gift of the Lord. This means protecting unborn babies, but more broadly, also helping our ailing society and the world to consider our fellow human beings not as mere mouths to feed; or potential threats; or problems to solve; or subjects to control; but as blessings from above. Unborn babies are a blessing; children are a blessing; the elderly are a blessing people are a blessing; the difficult people in our lives are a blessing; even our enemies-perhaps especially our enemies-are a blessing.
Moreover, we speak of the holiness of life for two reasons: because life is received from the Lord and because we will have to give it back to the Lord through service to Him and to others, which leads to holiness. If we realize that we are but "servants worthless because we did what we had to do" (Lk. 17:10); and if we recognize that the greatest and most holy is the One who became everyone's Servant through His incarnation, His ministry, His suffering, and His Resurrection (cf. Mt. 23:11); then it will be easiest for us to treat everyone as a blessing, not in the abstract sense, but in the sense of someone whom we are privileged to serve.
By living this way, we better understand our own life as a blessing because it is an opportunity to attain holiness. If we truly live according to our belief in the holiness of life, then we will naturally "surrender ourselves, and one another, and our whole life to Christ God," offering thanksgiving and extolling His holy name for the immeasurably precious gift of human life and for every person who comes into the world (cf. Jn. 1:9).
In this Sanctity of Life Week, we pray that all people in North America and around the world will recognize "the giving of good gifts and ... the gift of the perfect" (James 1:17), which is human life, learned to appreciate this gift and to give glory to the all-glorious Creator of all things, one God in Trinity - Father, Son and Holy Spirit, forever and ever.
Yours in Christ,
+Tikhon
Archbishop of Washington
Metropolitan of all America and Canada."
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