His Beatitude Metropolitan Tikhon Presides at First Feast Day of Righteous Mother Olga in Washington, DC
On Monday, October 27, 2025, His Beatitude Metropolitan Tikhon made an archpastoral visit to St. Nicholas Cathedral, in Washington DC, for the inaugural Feast Day of the Righteous Mother Olga of Kwethluk–Tanqilria Arrsamquq–Wonderworker, Matushka of All Alaska.
This archpastoral visit was the culmination of several events this year marking the canonization of St. Olga. In anticipation of this unique event, His Beatitude, along with the Holy Synod, issued a general call to serve the inaugural feast day of St. Olga to all the clergy and faithful of the Orthodox Church in America. Concelebrating with His Beatitude at St. Nicholas Cathedral were Priest David Bozeman, Secretary of the Orthodox Church in America, along with clergy and faithful of the Archdiocese of Washington.
His Beatitude delivered the homily where he reflected on the ways the saints continue to bear witness to God. He encouraged the faithful to remember that “they are simply a reminder for us, who are so often hard-hearted and stiff-necked, that God is living and active in his saints and in our lives. He is always at work through his saints—both those departed this life and those who still remain, often hidden, in our midst—guiding us toward salvation and leading us toward himself. As St. Paisios the Athonite teaches, if our eyes were fully open, then we would perceive our whole life and the whole world as a miracle of God.”
Read the full text of His Beatitude’s homily
At the conclusion of the Liturgy, His Beatitude greeted all those present, spoke briefly about the canonization event itself, recalling the surprising appearance of several flocks of birds, the dust and difficulty of the journey to Kwethluk, and the theme of water in baptism and as life-giving reality for the Alaskan community. He then joined the St. Nicholas community and gathered clergy for a meal.