Archbishop
Saint Joseph, Archbishop of Thessalonica, brother of the Venerable Theodore Studite, devoted himself from a young age under the guidance of his uncle, the Venerable Platon, who founded a monastery in Sakudion. He denounced the unlawful marriage of Emperor Constantine VI, for which he was brought to Constantinople, tormented by hunger and imprisoned on a barren island. Emperor Michael the Kurapalates allowed him to return, but under Leo the Armenian, Saint Joseph suffered persecution for the veneration of icons, enduring torture and imprisonment in a dungeon. Refusing to sign the iconoclast confession of faith, he was thrown into another prison. Later, Michael the Stammerer freed him along with other monks who had suffered for the veneration of icons. Saint Joseph reposed in the Studite Monastery, where he spent the last years of his life. He is known as a hymnographer, and his works include stichera and canons that reflect the spirit of fasting and repentance.
