Just a few days ago, we celebrated the Annunciation to the most holy Theotokos; now, we dedicate a whole liturgical day to her akathist hymn. This akathist is truly one of the great treasures of the Orthodox Christian tradition. At many services, we hear these words: “It is truly meet to bless thee, O Theotokos.” The akathist hymn is a school in which we learn meetly to bless the Mother of God in accordance with the traditions of the Fathers; it is a grammar and dictionary through which we learn the language of her praise. It is no wonder that many saints and ascetics of piety read the akathist hymn daily, thus passing their life in praise of the Mother of Life, the Life that never withers or fades.
Could each of us make the time to read the akathist at least once a week, perhaps on Saturdays? For just as Saturday precedes Sunday, so it is that, through the Theotokos, we encounter Christ, who comes into the world through her.