THEODORE OF STUDIOS (759–826), theologian and monastic reformer of the Byzantine church. Born to an aristocratic family in Constantinople, Theodore received an excellent secular and religious education under the close supervision of his mother, Theoktiste, and his mother's brother, the abbot Platon.

Eighth-century Byzantine society was greatly disturbed by the Iconoclastic Controversy. Theodore's family had sided with the Iconophiles, those who favored the use of icons in Christian worship. His uncle Platon was a leader against the Iconoclasts, and Theodore followed in his footsteps, as a result of which he suffered persecution and was sent into exile three times.

When the persecution of the Iconophiles ceased under Emperor Leo IV, many monks, including Platon, returned to Constantinople. Under his influence, Theodore's family moved in 780 to Bithynia, where they established a monastic community on their estate of Fotinou, not far from the village of Sakkoudion. Here...