Venenerable Confessor John Psykhaϊtēs

Saint John loved Christ from a very young age. He therefore left the world behind and became a monk. Through prayer and through his virtuous way of life, he received from God the gift of working miracles. He cast out the demons that tormented people and healed their illnesses, strengthening the faith of all who came to him, especially during the period of the Iconoclast controversy. The emperor, a harsh persecutor of the iconophiles, arrested him and tried to persuade him to renounce the veneration of the holy icons. However, the saint rebuked him for his false beliefs, called him a heretic and refused to give in to his threats. He was therefore sent into exile, where he endured many trials and ended his life as a martyr.