Synaxarion for the First Sunday of Great Lent. The Triumph of Orthodoxy

On this day, the First Sunday of the Holy Fast, the Church is accustomed to celebrate the restoration of the veneration of the holy and venerable icons, accomplished by Emperor Mikhail and his mother, the blessed Empress Feodora, together with the holy Patriarch Methodiy of Constantinople. The history is as follows.

When Lev the Isaurian—formerly a swineherd and donkey driver—by God’s permission seized the imperial power, the holy hierarch German, who at that time held the governance of the Church, was summoned to him and heard these words: “It seems to me, master, that icons differ in no way from idols; therefore order them removed as quickly as possible. If they are truly images of the saints, they should be hung higher up, so that we, wallowing in sins, do not constantly defile them by kissing them.” But the patriarch rejected all these impieties of the emperor, saying: “Are you not the one, O emperor, who, according to prophecy, will raise persecution against the holy icons, and whose name is Konon?” He replied: “Yes, that was my name in infancy.” Since the patriarch would not obey his will, the emperor banished him and installed in his place his like-minded associate Anastasiy. Then he openly began the struggle against the holy icons. It is said that even earlier Jews instilled this hatred of icons in him, having foretold by sorcery his elevation to the throne at a time when he was poor and practiced the trade of donkey driver together with them.

After the evil life of Lev was cruelly cut short, his most wicked cub, Konstantin Kopronim, succeeded to his power and launched an even more furious persecution against the holy icons. And though one must say that no matter how many and what lawless deeds he committed, he too came to a shameful end. His son by a Khazar woman ascended the throne, but he too met a painful death. The heirs to the throne became Irina and Konstantin. At the insistence of the most holy Patriarch Tarasiy, they convened the Seventh Ecumenical Council, at which Christ’s Church once again accepted the veneration of the holy icons. After their deposition, Nikifor Genik ascended the throne; then Stavrakiy, and after him Mikhail Rangave, who all venerated the holy icons.

The successor to Mikhail was the beast-like Lev the Armenian. Deceived by a certain impious monk-hermit, he began the second iconoclastic persecution, and once again the Church of God was deprived of her beauty. Lev the Armenian was succeeded by Mikhail the Amorian, and then by his son Feofil, who again raised persecution against the icons, surpassing all the others. Thus this Feofil subjected many of the holy fathers to various punishments and tortures for the sake of the holy icons. However, it is said that during his reign he especially championed justice (he could not tolerate injustice), so that they searched throughout the entire city for a person who was to be judged with another in the emperor’s presence, and for many (seventeen) days they found absolutely no one.

Feofil ruled autocratically for twelve years, after which he fell ill with dysentery, which tormented him so that his mouth opened wide up to his throat. Empress Feodora, in great sorrow over what had happened, briefly fell asleep and saw in a dream the Most Holy God-bearer holding the Eternal Infant in Her arms, surrounded by radiant Angels who were scourging and rebuking her husband Feofil. When she awoke, Feofil, having somewhat come to himself, cried out: “Woe to me, wretched one! For the holy icons I am being scourged.” The empress immediately placed an image of the God-bearer on his head, praying to Her with tears. Feofil, seeing a small icon on the breast of one of those standing nearby, took it and

he kissed it. And immediately the lips that had blasphemed the icons, and the grotesquely opened throat, closed up. Delivered from the calamity and torments that had befallen him, he fell asleep, convinced that it is very good to venerate the holy icons. The empress brought holy and venerable images from her chest and urged her husband to kiss them and venerate them with all his soul. Soon Feofil departed this life.

Feodora summoned all who were in exile and in prisons and set them free. The one called Ioann—also known as Yanniy—was cast down from the patriarchal throne; he was more a chief of soothsayers and demons than a patriarch. In his place was raised the confessor of Christ, Mefodiy, who had previously suffered much for the icons and had been buried alive in a tomb.

At that time, by divine illumination, the holy hermit Arsakiy appeared to the venerable Ioannikiy the Great, who was laboring in the mountains of Olympus, and said to him: “God has sent me to you so that we, going to Nikomidia to the venerable man Isaiya the Recluse, may learn from him and accomplish what is pleasing to God and fitting for His Church.” When they came to the venerable Isaiya, they heard from him: “Thus says the Lord: behold, the end has drawn near for the enemies of My Image. Therefore go to Empress Feodora. And tell Patriarch Mefodiy: excommunicate all the impious, and then with the Angels offer Me a sacrifice of praise, venerating the image of My countenance and of the Cross.” Having heard this, the ascetics hastened to Constantinople and conveyed everything that the venerable Isaiya had said to Patriarch Mefodiy and to all the chosen of God. They gathered together and went to the empress, finding her obedient in everything, for she was pious and God-loving, holding the veneration of the holy icons handed down from her ancestors. The empress immediately drew forth the image of the God-bearer that hung around her neck for all to see, kissed it, and said: “Whoever does not venerate and kiss them with love—not as gods, but as images, for the love of the Prototype—let him be excommunicated from the Church.” The fathers rejoiced with great joy. Feodora asked them to offer prayer for her husband Feofil. Seeing her faith, though they said it was beyond their strength, they nevertheless obeyed. Holy Patriarch Mefodiy came to the Great Church of God and gathered all the Orthodox people, the clergy, the hierarchs, monks, and desert-dwellers—including the aforementioned Ioannikiy the Great from Olympus, Arsakiy, Navkratiy the disciple of Theodor Studit, Feofan the hegumen of the “Great Field,” Theodor and Feofan the Inscribed, Mikhail the Holy-City-dweller, syncellus and confessor, and many others. They all offered supplication for Feofil, praying with tears and ceaselessly entreating God. And so they did throughout the entire first week of the Great Fast. Empress Feodora herself prayed in the same manner together with the senate and all who were in the palace.

Meanwhile, on Friday at dawn, Empress Feodora fell asleep and saw herself standing near the column of Constantine the Great. She beheld certain people coming noisily along the road, carrying instruments of torture, and in their midst they were dragging Emperor Feofil with his hands bound behind his back. Recognizing her husband, she followed those leading him. When they reached the Copper Gates, she saw a certain wondrous Man seated before the icon of the Savior, before Whom they placed Feofil. Falling at the feet of this Man, the empress began to entreat Him for the emperor. At last He opened His mouth and said: “Woman, great is your faith. Know therefore that for the sake of your tears and your faith, and also for the prayers and supplications of My servants and My priests, I grant forgiveness to your husband Feofil.” And He commanded those leading the emperor: “Untie him and give him to his wife.” She took him and departed, rejoicing and exulting, and at once awoke.

While the prayers and supplications were being offered, Patriarch Mefodiy took a clean scroll and wrote on it the names of all the heretical emperors, including Emperor Feofil, and placed it on the holy altar (under the indition) in the sanctuary. On Friday he too saw a certain fearsome and great Angel entering the church. Approaching him, the Angel said: “Your prayer has been heard, O bishop: Emperor Feofil has received forgiveness; from now on do not trouble God with this anymore.” The patriarch, to test whether the vision was true, left his place, took the scroll, unrolled it, and found—O the judgments of God!—that the name of Feofil had been completely erased by God.

Learning of this, the empress rejoiced greatly. She sent to the patriarch and ordered that all the people be gathered with honorable crosses and holy icons in the Great Church, so as to restore the holy images to it and proclaim to all this new wonder of God. Soon, when everyone had assembled in the church with candles, the empress came with her son. During the litany they went out and reached the aforementioned road with the holy icons, the divine and honorable wood of the Cross, the sacred and divine Gospel, crying out: “Lord, have mercy.” And so, returning again to the church, they celebrated the Divine Liturgy. Then the holy icons were restored by the chosen holy men, many years were proclaimed to the pious and Orthodox, and those who opposed and were impious, not accepting the veneration of the holy icons, were excommunicated and anathematized. And from that time the holy confessors decreed that this sacred solemnity should be celebrated in this manner every year, so that we might never again fall into the same impiety.

O unchangeable Image of the Father, by the prayers of Thy holy confessors have mercy on us. Amen.