Venerable
Nikitas of Medikion (or Nikitas the Confessor; c. 760, Bithynia — April 3, 824, Princes' Islands) was a Christian saint, revered as a confessor and abbot of the Medikion Monastery. Born into a pious family, he was raised in a church environment and entered the monastery in his youth, where he was known for strict discipline and devout life. In 790 he was ordained a hieromonk and later became head of the monastery, which grew to one hundred monks under his leadership.
The saint was gifted with miracles: through his prayers the sick and possessed were healed. During the iconoclast persecutions under Emperor Leo the Armenian, Nikitas firmly defended the veneration of icons, for which he was imprisoned and exiled. After a brief concession he repented and once again denounced the heresy, enduring further imprisonments where he continued to strengthen fellow believers and perform miracles.
After his release Nikitas retired to one of the islands near Constantinople. He died there on April 3, 824, during the reign of Emperor Michael II, and his body was solemnly transferred to the Medikion Monastery.
