Methodios I
Monk who had come through long imprisonment under the iconoclast emperors, made patriarch of Constantinople under the regency of Theodora. He led the restoration of the images and held the see for four years.
The Continuator of Theophanes introduces Methodios as a man who had kept his integrity through long imprisonment, in a cell so foul that his hair had fallen out. He was installed when the iconoclast patriarch John the Grammarian was removed (Theophanes Continuatus 4.3), and with the empress Theodora the Empress led the procession to Hagia Sophia on the first Sunday of Lent (Theophanes Continuatus 4.6). The same history says that he died after four years as patriarch (Theophanes Continuatus 4.30).
The Synodikon of Orthodoxy names him with Germanos, Tarasios and Nikephoros as a champion and teacher of orthodoxy (Synodikon of Orthodoxy, acclamations). See the Triumph of Orthodoxy.
In the timeline
- 11 March AD 843, estimated dateThe Triumph of Orthodoxy
After the death of the iconoclast emperor Theophilus, his widow Theodora and the new patriarch Methodios restore the veneration of icons at Constantinople. The day is kept each year on the first Sunday of Lent.
Primary sources
Chronographia (Theophanes Continuatus)
- Theophanes Continuatus 4.3archive.org
- Theophanes Continuatus 4.6archive.org
- Theophanes Continuatus 4.30archive.org
Synodikon of Orthodoxy
- Synodikon of Orthodoxy, acclamationsweb.archive.org