Michael the Confessor, also known as Michael the Synkellos, was a ninth-century priest and monk remembered for his defense of the holy icons during the second period of Byzantine iconoclasm. Born at Jerusalem into a family of devout Christians, he embraced the monastic life at an early age. According to the synaxarion, after the death of his father his mother and sisters entered a monastery, while Michael was ordained a priest and became known as a powerful preacher. On account of this gift, the Patriarch Thomas I of Jerusalem advanced him to the office of synkellos, an administrative position concerned with the governance of the Church.
Michael's confession of the faith unfolded under two iconoclast emperors. The Patriarch of Jerusalem sent him to the emperor Leo the Armenian (813-820), together with the brothers Theodore and Theophanes, in the hope of persuading the emperor to halt his persecution of those who venerated the icons. Leo responded by having Michael beaten and sent into exile. Having returned from this exile, Michael suffered again for the veneration of the icons under the emperor Theophilus (829-842), the last of the iconoclast rulers.
After the empress Theodora restored the veneration of the holy icons in 843, the persecution came to an end. The tradition relates that Michael declined elevation to the patriarchate, choosing instead to continue in his office of synkellos to the end of his life. He died peacefully in about the year 845 and is commemorated on December 18. He is to be distinguished from Saint Michael the Confessor, Bishop of Synnada, who is commemorated on May 23.
