To us Orthodox, the concept of "consecration" of a country seems, or rather sounds strange to our ears. Indeed, it almost seems redundant. Yet, we consecrate a church to a saint or dedicate a cause, a hospital, a camp to a saint or to the protection of the Blessed Mother. I think that the excesses of some Roman Catholics who fashion themselves "traditionalists" and their zealotry frightens us and often offends us. We tend to talk past each other without taking the time to think that perhaps, we are not the exclusive possessors of the only path to God's ear. For a thousand years the Church was one, but used different imagery, different prayer and yet it maintained its unity. I suppose,the fact we are not in communion has closed our hearts to the realization that the temporal bar to communion doesn't invalidate the prayers of our brothers.
After all, one of the great stories of Constantinople is that of the response of the Theotokas to the prayerful pleas of the faithful seeking her intercession and protection - She appeared at the Church of Blachernae, "The Theotokos approached the center of the church, knelt down and remained in prayer for a long time. Her face was drowned in tears. Then she took her veil (cerement) off and spread it over the people as a sign of protection. During the time, the people in the city were threatened by a barbarian invasion. After the appearance of the Mother of God, the danger was averted and the city was spared from bloodshed and suffering."
http://orthodoxwiki.org/Protection_of_the_Mother_of_GodOf course this event is commemorated in the Marian feast most beloved by Ukrainians, Rusyns and Russians - the Pokrov.
