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Saint Methodius I of Constantinople
Late 14th-early 15th century icon illustrating the "Triumph of Orthodoxy" in 843. Methodius is depicted in the upper register, to the right of the icon, with Theodora and her son Michael to the left, National Icon Collection 18, British Museum.
Ecumenical patriarch of Constantinople
Born	Methodius 788 Syracuse, Theme of Sicily (modern-day Italy)
Died	14 June 847 Constantinople, Byzantine Empire (modern-day Istanbul, Turkey)
Venerated in	Eastern Orthodox Church, Catholic Church
Feast	14 June

Methodius I of Constantinople or Methodios I (Greek: Μεθόδιος Α΄; 788/800 – 14 June 847) was Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople from 11 March 843 to 14 June 847. He was born in Syracuse and died in Constantinople. His feast day is celebrated on June 14 in both the East and the West.

Life

Born to wealthy parents, Methodius was sent as a young man to Constantinople to continue his education and hopefully attain an appointment at court. But instead, he entered a monastery in Bithynia, eventually becoming abbot.

Under Emperor Leo V the Armenian (813–820) the Iconoclast persecution broke out for the second time. In 815 Methodius went to Rome, perhaps as an envoy of the deposed Patriarch Nicephorus I of Constantinople. Upon his return in 821 he was arrested and exiled as an iconodule by the Iconoclast regime of Emperor Michael II. In 828 Michael II, not long before his death, mitigated the persecution and proclaimed a general amnesty. Methodius returned to Constantinople.

Michael II was succeeded by his son, Theophilos, who followed his father's policies. Methodius was again arrested and imprisoned. He escaped and was hidden by friends. Seeing that Methodius was not to be overcome by punishment, the emperor tried to convince him by argument. The result of their discussion was that Methodius to some extent persuaded the emperor. At any rate towards the end of the reign, the persecution was mitigated. Theophilos died in 842.

Soon after the death of the emperor, in 843, the influential minister Theoktistos convinced the Empress Mother Theodora, as regent for her two-year-old son Michael III, to permit the restoration of icons. He then deposed the iconoclast Patriarch John VII of Constantinople and secured the appointment of Methodius as his successor, bringing about the end of the iconoclast controversy.

A week after his appointment and after the Council of Constantinople (843), accompanied by Theodora, Michael, and Theoktistos, Methodius made a triumphal procession from the church of Blachernae to Hagia Sophia on 11 March 843, restoring the icons to the church. This heralded the restoration of Christian orthodoxy, and became a holiday in the Byzantine Church, celebrated every year on the First Sunday of Great Lent, and known as the "Triumph of Orthodoxy".

The final years of the saint passed peacefully, he toiled much, wisely guided the Church and his flock. Throughout his short patriarchate, Methodius I tried to pursue a moderate line of accommodation with members of the clergy who were formerly iconoclasts.

Methodius I was well-educated, engaged in both copying and writing of manuscripts. His individual works included polemica, hagiographical and liturgical works, sermons and poetry.

Notes and references

 This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Methodius I". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.

1. "St. Methodius I of Constantinople". FaithND.
2. ^ Adrian Fortescue, "Methodius I", Catholic Encyclopedia, Vol. 9, New York, Robert Appleton Company, 1910 This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
3. Treadgold, Warren (1997). A History of the Byzantine State and Society. Stanford, California: Stanford University Press. p. 446. ISBN 0-8047-2630-2.
4. Timothy E. Gregory, A History of Byzantium, (Blackwell Publishing, 2010), p. 227.
5. Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of World Religions, January 2000, p. 231 ISBN 0877790442.
6. ^ "St Methodius the Patriarch of Constantinople". Orthodox Church in America.

See also

• Council of Constantinople (843)
• Theodora (wife of Theophilos)

Sources

• The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium, Oxford University Press, 1991.

Authority control databases
International	ISNI VIAF 2
National	Germany Italy Netherlands Vatican
People	Italian People Deutsche Biographie DDB
Other	IdRef

• 847 deaths
• People from Syracuse, Sicily
• Byzantine saints
• Byzantine Iconoclasm
• Byzantine saints of the Eastern Orthodox Church
• Sicilian saints
• 9th-century patriarchs of Constantinople
• 9th-century Christian saints