The life of St Theodore the Sykeote
Ordained deacon and then priest while still in his teens, he later traveled to the holy places of Jerusalem and received the monastic tonsure at the Choziba lavra near the Jordan before returning home. His reputation for healing and for driving out even the most stubborn afflictions earned him, half admiringly, the name Iron-eater for the harshness of his own life. Around 584 he was made bishop of Anastasioupolis, the city near his home village, and governed that see for about ten years before asking, and eventually being granted, release from its administration, though he kept the rank of bishop for the rest of his life. Freed from those duties, he spent his remaining years traveling through the region, working what his contemporaries took to be many wonders and strengthening the faith of those he met, until his death around 613.
