Bishop
Saint Theophanes was born in Palestine to devout parents. His brother was Saint Theodore, known by the epithet “Graptus” (the branded). The saint was highly educated, possessing deep knowledge of the Holy Scripture and the sacred writings of the Church, while he had also studied the works of the ancient Greek authors and philosophers. Renouncing worldly life, he came to the Lavra of Saint Sabbas the Sanctified, where he devoted himself to the monastic life, excelling in prayer and virtue. He had also become a priest.
During the persecutions against the holy icons, he was sent by the Patriarch of Jerusalem, Saint Nikephoros, to the Emperor Leo the Armenian in order to denounce the violence and cruelty inflicted upon the faithful. There, he endured numerous tortures under the emperors Leo, Michael the Amorian, and Theophilos. He was imprisoned, left to suffer from hunger, and exiled from the city.
During this same period, his brother, Saint Theodore, fell asleep in the Lord. Saint Theophanes, however, lived to witness the restoration of peace in the Church of Christ.
After the restoration of the veneration of the holy icons under Michael III, the saint returned from exile and was ordained by Patriarch Methodios to the metropolitan see of Nicaea. He composed a canon in honor of the holy icons, while he had also left behind many of his writings as a spiritual legacy for all Christians.
He reposed around the year 850.
