8th–9th century
Saint John the Confessor of Katharon
Abbot of the Katharon monastery who prepared his monks to defend the holy icons during renewed Iconoclasm.
Biography
John was born around 778 in Irenoupolis in Coele Syria to pious parents and became a monk while still young. In 787 he accompanied his elder to Nicaea, where the Seventh Ecumenical Council was meeting, and won the esteem of Empress Irene and Patriarch Tarasius.
He was ordained a priest and, under Emperor Nikephoros, was appointed abbot of the Katharon monastery, where he fostered discipline and the spiritual life of his brethren. When a new wave of Iconoclasm broke out under Leo V, he prepared his monks to defend the holy icons at any risk.