March for Life plans finalized

WASHINGTON, DC (OCA) - Orthodox Christians from across the country will gather here on Friday, January 22, 2010, for the annual March for Life.

His Beatitude, Metropolitan Jonah, will lead hundreds of Orthodox Christians in proclaiming life as a precious gift from God.

Services and events surrounding the March include the following.

On Thursday, January 21, the eve of the March, the faithful are invited to join Metropolitan Jonah and other members of the Holy Synod of Bishops for Vespers at Saint Nicholas Cathedral, 3500 Massachusetts Ave. NW, at 7:00 p.m. A reception and fellowship will follow in the cathedral hall.

On Friday morning, January 22, Metropolitan Jonah and members of the Holy Synod will concelebrate the Divine Liturgy at the cathedral at 8:00 a.m. Students from Saint Vladimir's Seminary, Crestwood, NY and Saint Tikhon's Seminary, South Canaan, PA, will form a combined choir to render the liturgical responses.

At noon on Friday, marchers are asked to gather under the "Orthodox Christians for Life" banner on the Mall at 7th Street near the Smithsonian Castle. Metropolitan Jonah will be the first of several speakers to address the public at the pre-March program. At the conclusion of the March, he will offer prayers for the victims of abortion.

On Friday evening, Metropolitan Jonah will offer the invocation at the annual Rose Dinner at DC's Hyatt Regency Hotel.

And also...

JOHNSTOWN, PA (ACROD) - Diocesan Clergy and Faithful from throughout the diocese will participate in the Annual March for Life on Friday, January 22, 2010 in Washington D.C. This Year's March marks the 27th Anniversary of the Supreme Court Decision Roe V Wade which legalized Abortion. The March will be preceeded by a rally at Noon on the National Mall on 7th Street. Orthodox Christians from throughout the U.S. will March together behind the Orthodox Christians For Life Banner, offering prayers and singing hymns, beseeching the intervention of Almighty God in ending this legalized infantcide.

Further information on the March and related events may be found here.