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he plays the fox, and demanded prophetic usages and testimonies permitting icons to be venerated. But when the other of the brothers, the blessed Theophanes, brought forth a certain saying from the prophecy of Isaiah, 2.115 Theophilus contradicted, saying that it was not so, and at the same time, unrolling his own book, he showed his words to be trustworthy, perhaps. But when the saint cried out that not only this one had been corrupted by him, but also all those that had happened to come into his hand, he proposed that the book lying in the patriarchal library in the Thomaites at this location should be brought to him for confirmation of what was said. When, therefore, someone was sent and brought the book faster than one could say, the emperor, willingly unrolling it, missed the book, and being ashamed, he skipped over the sought-after phrase, and made his search in other places. But when he was instructed by the blessed Theophanes, who was pointing with his finger, "that after turning three pages, you will find what is sought," then indeed, not bearing the rebukes of his frankness, and conscious that the truth was so, casting off his long-suffering until then and revealing the beast, he said, "It is not right for an emperor to be insulted by such men," and thereupon he ordered that they be led away to the middle garden of the Lausiakos and be beaten with very heavy blows of rods up to two hundred, and that the foolish iambic verses he had composed be barbarously tattooed on their foreheads. These are they. When all desired to run to the city where the all-holy feet of the Word of God 2.116 stood for the establishment of the world, these men were seen in the revered place, wicked vessels of superstitious error. There, then, out of unbelief, having done many shameful, terrible, and impious things, they were driven from there as apostates. And having fled to the city of the empire, they did not abandon their lawless follies. Therefore, being branded in their appearance as evil-doers, they are condemned and persecuted again. And when this had been done quickly, they bound on the crown of confession and endurance, but this arrogant man, more wretched than all wretched men, was revealed to all as a blasphemer and persecutor and more heterodox than any heterodox person ever.

After their faces were inscribed, therefore, the confessors were sent into exile. And before these things, Saint Methodios was also imprisoned alive in a tomb on a certain island, together with two murderers, in which tomb he was fed by a certain fisherman. When the saints Theophanes and Theodore found this very fisherman, and learned the things concerning him, through such a fisherman they write the following to the great Methodios. To the living dead and life-bearing corpse, 2.117 dwelling on the earth and treading on the heavens, the inscribed prisoners write to the prisoner. To whom he himself also wrote back through the same fisherman. Those who with books are key-writers of the heavens and prudently marked upon their foreheads the one buried alive addressed as fellow prisoners. And in addition to these, also the blessed Michael, the syncellus of the church in the holy city, he imprisoned along with many other ascetics, expecting to subdue them by long-lasting hardship. And such were his youthful exploits against the saints, and thus the one seen as a man for our sake, being true God, he insulted, and his true servants, not for a short and limited time but for the entire time of his life, he mistreated and subjected to incurable misfortunes. He also took pride in being a composer, for which reason, composing certain hymns and setting stichera to music, he encouraged them to be sung; among which also was the "Bless ye" of the fourth tone, which he adapted from the "Hear, O maiden" of the 8th ode, and providing a different rhythm, he appointed it to be sung in the church of God for all to hear. And a certain story is told that, being struck by a love for melody, in the great church during a splendid festival 2.118 he did not refuse to conduct with his hands, giving to the clergy on behalf of

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ἀλωπεκῆν ὑποκρίνεται, καὶ χρήσεις προφη τικὰς ἀπῄτει καὶ μαρτυρίας τὰς εἰκόνας ἐπιτρεπούσας προσκυνεῖ σθαι. θατέρου δὲ τῶν ἀδελφῶν τοῦ μακαρίτου Θεοφάνους ῥῆσίν τινα ἐκ τῆς τοῦ Ἠσαΐου προφέροντος προφητείας, οὐκ ἔχειν οὕτω 2.115 ταύτην ἀντέλεγεν ὁ Θεόφιλος, καὶ ἅμα τὴν ἑαυτοῦ βίβλον ἀνελίτ των ἐδείκνυ τάχα τοὺς λόγους πιστούς. ὡς δὲ νενοθεῦσθαι ὑπ' αὐτοῦ οὐ μόνον δὴ ταύτην ὁ ἅγιος ἐπεβόα, ἀλλὰ καὶ πάσας τὰς ὅσαι εἰς τὴν αὐτοῦ ἐλθοῦσαι ἔτυχον χεῖρα, ἐκείνην ἔλεγε προτιθεὶς ἰέναι πρὸς αὐτὸν τὴν βίβλον τὴν κατὰ τὴν πατριαρχικὴν ἐν τῷ Θωμαΐτῃ κατὰ τήνδε τὴν θέσιν κειμένην βιβλιοθήκην εἰς πίστιν τῶν λεγομένων. ἐπεὶ γοῦν τις ἀπέσταλτο καὶ θᾶττον ἢ λόγος ἤγαγε τὸ βιβλίον, ἑκὼν μὲν ἀνελίττων ὁ βασιλεὺς ἡμάρτανε τοῦ βιβλίου, καὶ αἰσχυνόμενος ὑπερεπήδα μὲν τὴν ζητουμένην φράσιν, ἐν ἄλλοις δὲ καὶ ἄλλοις ἐποιεῖτο τὴν ζήτησιν. ὡς δ' ὑπὸ τοῦ μα καρίτου Θεοφάνους ἀνεδιδάσκετο δακτυλοδεικτοῦντος ὡς ἐπὶ τρία φύλλα διαβιβάσας τὸ ζητούμενον καταλάβῃς, τότε δὴ μὴ φέρων τοὺς τῆς παρρησίας ἐλέγχους, συνειδὼς δὲ καὶ τὴν ἀλήθειαν ἔχουσαν οὕτως, τὸ ἕως τότε ἀπορρίψας μακρόθυμον καὶ τὸν θῆρα ἀνακαλύψας "οὐ δίκαιον" ἔφησε "βασιλέα ὑπὸ τοιούτων ἀνδρῶν ἐνυβρίζεσθαι," καὶ λοιπὸν προσέταξε τῷ τοῦ Λαυσιακοῦ μεσο κηπίῳ αὐτοὺς ἀπαχθέντας ῥαβδισθῆναι ῥάβδων φοραῖς βαρυτά ταις ἄχρι τῶν διακοσίων, καὶ τοῖς μετώποις αὐτῶν ἐπιγραφῆναι βαρβαρικῶς ἐγκεντηθέντας οὓς συντέθεικε λήρους ἰάμβους. εἰσὶ δὲ οὗτοι. πάντων ποθούντων προστρέχειν πρὸς τὴν πόλιν ὅπου πάναγνοι τοῦ θεοῦ λόγου πόδες 2.116 ἔστησαν εἰς σύστασιν τῆς οἰκουμένης, ὤφθησαν οὗτοι τῷ σεβασμίῳ τόπῳ σκεύη πονηρὰ δεισιδαίμονος πλάνης. ἐκεῖσε πολλὰ λοιπὸν ἐξ ἀπιστίας πράξαντες αἰσχρὰ δεινὰ δυσσεβοφρόνως, ἐκεῖθεν ἠλάθησαν ὡς ἀποστάται. πρὸς τὴν πόλιν δὲ τοῦ κράτους πεφευγότες οὐκ ἐξαφῆκαν τὰς ἀθέσμους μωρίας. ὅθεν γραφέντες ὡς κακοῦργοι τὴν θέαν κατακρίνονται καὶ διώκονται πάλιν. τούτου δὲ θᾶττον γενομένου ἐκεῖνοι μὲν τὸν τῆς ὁμολογίας καὶ καρτερίας ἀνεδήσαντο στέφανον, οὗτος δὲ ὁ σοβαρὸς καὶ πάντων ἀθλίων ἀθλιώτερος πᾶσιν ἀνεδείχθη βλάσφημος καὶ διώκτης καὶ τῶν πώποτε κακοδόξων κακοδοξότερος.

Μετὰ τὸ γραφῆναι τοίνυν τὰς ὄψεις οἱ ὁμολογηταὶ εἰς ὑπερορίαν ἐστάλησαν. πρὸ τούτων δὲ καὶ ὁ ἅγιος Μεθόδιος εἴς τινα νῆσον ἐν τάφῳ καθείρχθη ζῶν, ἅμα δυσὶν ἀνδροφόνοις, ἐν ᾧ τάφῳ διά τινος ἐτρέφετο ἁλιέως. ὃν δὴ ἁλιέα εὑρόντες οἱ ἅγιοι Θεοφάνης καὶ Θεόδωρος, καὶ τὰ κατ' αὐτὸν πυθόμενοι, διὰ τοῦ τοιούτου ἁλιέως γράφουσι τῷ μεγάλῳ Μεθοδίῳ τάδε. τῷ ζῶντι νεκρῷ καὶ νεκρῷ ζωηφόρῳ, 2.117 ναίοντι τὴν γῆν καὶ πατοῦντι τὸν πόλον, γραπτοὶ γράφουσι δέσμιοι τῷ δεσμίῳ. πρὸς οὓς καὶ αὐτὸς ἀντέγραψε διὰ τοῦ αὐτοῦ ἁλιέως τοὺς ταῖς βίβλοισιν οὐρανῶν κλησιγράφους καὶ πρὸς μέτωπα σωφρόνως ἐστιγμένους προσεῖπεν ὁ ζώθαπτος ὡς συνδεσμίους. πρὸς τούτοις δὲ καὶ τὸν μακαρίτην Μιχαήλ, τὸν σύγκελλον τῆς κατὰ τὴν ἁγίαν πόλιν ἐκκλησίας, σὺν ἑτέροις πολλοῖς ἀσκη ταῖς τῇ φυλακῇ καθεῖρξε, τῇ πολυχρονίῳ κακώσει ὑπάξαι τούτους καραδοκῶν. Καὶ τὰ μὲν κατὰ τῶν ἁγίων τοιαῦτα αὐτῷ νεανιεύματα, καὶ οὕτως τὸν δι' ἡμᾶς ὀφθέντα ἄνθρωπον, θεὸν ὄντα ἀληθινόν, ὕβριζε, καὶ τοὺς αὐτοῦ ἀληθινοὺς θεράποντας οὐ βραχεῖ χρόνῳ καὶ περιωρισμένῳ κατὰ πάντα δὲ τὸν τῆς ζωῆς αὐτοῦ χρόνον ἐκά κου καὶ ἀνηκέστοις καθυπέβαλλε συμφοραῖς. ἐφιλοτιμεῖτο δὲ καὶ μελῳδὸς εἶναι, διὸ καὶ ὕμνους ποιῶν τινὰς καὶ στιχηρὰ μελίζων ᾄδεσθαι προετρέπετο· μεθ' ὧν καὶ τὸ τοῦ τετάρτου ἤχου "εὐλο γεῖτε" ἐκ τοῦ κατὰ τὴν ηʹ ᾠδὴν "ἄκουε κόρη" μεθαρμοσάμενος, καὶ ῥυθμὸν ἕτερον παρασχών, ἐν τῇ τοῦ θεοῦ ἐκκλησίᾳ εἰς ἐπή κοον ᾄδεσθαι διωρίσατο. φέρεται δὲ καί τις λόγος ὡς ἔρωτι τοῦ μέλους βαλλόμενος κατὰ τὴν μεγάλην ἐκκλησίαν ἐν φαιδρᾷ πανη 2.118 γύρει οὐ παρῃτήσατο τὸ χειρονομεῖν, δοὺς τῷ κλήρῳ ὑπὲρ