Byzantine Saints: Saint Theophylactus, Bishop of Nicomedia (8 March)

About this sermon

St. Theophylactus, Bishop of Nicomedia, is commemorated on March 8. He lived during the turbulent 8th–9th century Byzantine iconoclast crisis, when holy images were attacked and destroyed by imperial decree. A devoted disciple of St. Tarasius, Patriarch of Constantinople, St. Theophylactus embraced the monastic life along the Black Sea coast, where his life of prayer and asceticism was blessed with miracles. During a drought, his prayers miraculously filled an empty vessel with enough water to sustain thirsty workers. Eventually consecrated Bishop of Nicomedia, St. Theophylactus became known for his deep charity. He built churches, cared for the poor, sheltered travelers, and personally tended to the sick—even washing the wounds of lepers. When the iconoclast emperor Leo the Armenian (813–820) revived the persecution against holy icons, St. Theophylactus stood firmly with Patriarch Nicephorus in defense of the Church. For boldly condemning the heresy and predicting the emperor’s death, the saint was banished to a fortress in Asia Minor, where he endured 30 years of exile. St. Theophylactus died around 845, a confessor of the faith. After the restoration of the veneration of icons under Empress Theodora, his holy relics were returned to Nicomedia in honor. His life stands as a powerful witness to courage, charity, and fidelity to the truth of the Church. May the prayers of St. Theophylactus of Nicomedia strengthen us to remain faithful to Christ in times of trial. 00:00 Introduction 00:25 The Life of St. Theophylactus 00:40 The Iconoclast Crisis Begins 01:05 The Seventh Ecumenical Council (787) 01:20 Monastic Life and Asceticism 01:35 Miracle During the Drought 01:53 Consecration as Bishop of Nicomedia 02:00 His Charity and Care for the Poor 02:22 Emperor Leo the Armenian Revives Iconoclasm 02:31 Defense of the Holy Icons 02:40 Prophecy Against the Emperor 02:46 Exile to Asia Minor 02:54 Thirty Years of Suffering 03:02 Restoration of Icon Veneration 03:10 Return of His Holy Relics https://www.oca.org/saints/lives 🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴 Support Catholic Businesses here - https://sensusfidelium.com/catholic-businesses/ Sensus Fidelium Press - https://sensusfideliumpress.com/ Sensus Fidelium Apps - https://sensusfidelium.tv/ Support Sensus Fidelium - https://sensusfidelium.com/donate-support/ 🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴 🙏🏻PLEASE HELP OUR CHANNEL GROW 🙏🏻 ▶️ 1. Become a Channel Patron: https://www.patreon.com/SensusFidelium ▶️ 2. Visit the website https://www.sensusfidelium.com for Gueranger, Saint of the Day, Apologetics, Meditation by the Saints, Scripture Study and more. ▶️ 3. Subscribe to Other Video Platforms 🔴 SensusFidelium.TV - https://sensusfidelium.tv/@SensusFidelium 🔴 BitChute --- https://www.bitchute.com/channel/Sensus_Fidelium/ 🔴 Rumble --- https://rumble.com/c/c-298311 🔴 My Catholic Tube - https://mycatholictube.com/videos/sensus-fidelium-channel/ 🔴 LBRY.tv --- https://lbry.tv/@SensusFidelium:c 🔴 ODYSEE - https://odysee.com/@SensusFidelium:c 🔴 UGETube - https://videos.utahgunexchange.com/@Sensus%20Fidelium 🔴 BrandNewTube - https://brandnewtube.com/@SensusFidelium 🔴 GabTV - https://tv.gab.com/channel/Sensus_Fidelium 🔴 GloriaTV - https://gloria.tv/Sensus%20Fidelium 🔴 Brighteon - https://www.brighteon.com/channels/sensusfidelium ▶️ 4. Paypal, Bitcoin, Anedot, Stripe, Square & PO Box donations - https://sensusfidelium.com/donate-support/ ▶️ 5. YouTube: Click Subscribe, then Click "Notification Bell" = 🔔 Please "Like" our videos so that Youtube shares it to others by clicking the "Like" thumbs-up under the video = 👍🏻 ▶️ 6. Please share this video 📲, and help others find Christ inside the Catholic Church! Please share this video on Facebook and Twitter using the share button. ▶️ 7. Follow on Social Media: 🔴 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SensusFidelium/ 🔴 Twitter: https://https://twitter.com/Sensus_Fidelium 🔴 YouTube: Click Subscribe, then Click "Notification Bell" = 🔔 🔴 Parler: https://parler.com/profile/Sensusfidelium/posts 🔴 SP3RN: https://www.sp3rn.com/community/pages/14-sensus-fidelium 🔴 GAB: https://gab.com/Sensus_Fidelium 🔴 Bastyon: https://bastyon.com/sensusfidelium 🔴 GETTR: https://gettr.com/user/sensus_fidelium 🔴 INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/sensusfidelium/ 🔴 Telegram: https//t.me/RealSensusFidelium 🔴 Truth Social - @SensusFidelium ▶️ 8. Follow on iTunes: 🔴 https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/sensus-fidelium-catholic-podcast/id1477010758 #SaintOfTheDay #StTheophylactus #OrthodoxSaints #CatholicSaints #ChurchHistory #Iconoclasm #ByzantineSaints #ChristianSaints #DefenderOfIcons #March8Saint #LivesOfTheSaints #OrthodoxChurch #CatholicHistory #SaintStory