My dear St. Theoctistus of Sicily, you served God and His people by raising up a monastery that became a place of refuge, rest, and protection for people suffering and dying under the tyranny of iconoclasm. Your compassionate tears, your unrelenting labor, and your constant prayer brought forth the uncreated silence of the Holy Spirit and the uncreated light of Christ for those you served.
O Righteous One, I ask your intercession today for a brotherhood of men who commit themselves to contemplation and the healing of God's people through the sacraments of Confession and Anointing. I also beg your help in raising up a sisterhood of women who pledge their lives to contemplating God, healing the wounds of the afflicted, catechizing the minds of the ignorant, and comforting those in spiritual distress.
Commemorated on 4 January, St. Theoctistus lived in the second half of the 8th century, during a period of violent iconoclasm. He was the founder and first abbot of the Monastery of St. Nicholas in Cucomo (now Caccamo in Palermo) in Sicily. St. Theoctistus was known to have sheltered many monks fleeing persecution. He died sometime around the year 800.
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