Saint Methodius was Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople from March 4, 843 to June 14, 847. He was born in Syracuse, Sicily. His parents sent Methodius to Constantinople to continue his education. Instead, he entered a monastery in Bithynia, eventually becoming abbot.

In 815 Methodius went to Rome and upon his return in 821 he was arrested and exiled as an iconodule by the Iconoclast regime of Emperor Michael II. Methodius was released in 829 and assumed a position of importance at the court of Emperor Theophilos.

Methodius was appointed as Patriarch in 843 when the iconoclast Patriarch John VII Grammatikos was deposed following the death of the emperor. A week after his appointment, accompanied by Empress Theodora, her son Michael and minister Theoktistos, Methodius made a triumphal procession from the church of Blachernae to Hagia Sophia on March 11, 843, restoring the icons to the church. This heralded the restoration of Catholic orthodoxy and the day is celebrated every year on the First Sunday of Great Lent, known as the "Triumph of Orthodoxy".

Methodius was indeed well-educated and he engaged in both copying and writing of manuscripts. His individual works included polemica, hagiographical and liturgical works, sermons and poetry.

He died in 847.

Other Saints of the Day
1. Saint Lotharius
2. Saint Mark of Lucera
3. Saint Cearan
4. Saint Elgar
5. Saint Joseph the Hymnographer

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