Thursday, December 31

Byzantine · c. 1055–c. 1126

St Theophylact of Ochrid

Archbishop of Ochrid, biblical commentator

Theophylact was born on the island of Euboea and rose in Constantinople as a deacon of Hagia Sophia and one of the most learned men of his age, serving as tutor to the heir of the emperor Michael VII. Around 1090 he was consecrated Archbishop of Ochrid, head of the autonomous Bulgarian Church, a see he served for decades though he often felt himself an exile among what he called barbarians — while nonetheless laboring faithfully for his Slavic flock and defending its clergy from imperial tax collectors. His enduring monument is his commentaries on the Gospels, Acts, the Epistles, and the minor prophets, which distill the exegesis of the Fathers, above all St John Chrysostom, with clarity and warmth. They became standard throughout the Orthodox world, and were valued in the West as well. He also wrote a Life of St Clement of Ochrid.

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