Theodore the Sykeote was a sixth- and early-seventh-century ascetic and bishop of Galatia in Asia Minor, remembered as a monastic founder, wonderworker, and exorcist. He was born in the mid-sixth century in the village of Sykeon, near the city of Anastasiopolis, from which he takes his surname. According to his Life, his mother Maria saw a bright star shining over her womb during her pregnancy, which a discerning elder interpreted as a sign of the grace of God upon the child.
From childhood Theodore was associated with the holy Great Martyr George, at whose nearby shrine he prayed and whom the tradition presents as his protector and guide in the ascetic life. As a youth he withdrew to live as a hermit, for a time in a cave, keeping severe fasts. He was ordained deacon and later priest by the local bishop Theodosius, and after a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, where he received monastic vows at the Monastery of Choziba near the Jordan, he returned to Galatia and gathered disciples around him.
About 584 Theodore was ordained Bishop of Anastasiopolis, a charge he held for roughly ten years. Finding the cares of governing a diocese a burden to his ascetic vocation, he eventually petitioned to be relieved of its administration; his request was granted, though he was commanded to retain his episcopal rank. He continued to travel, work miracles, and strengthen the faithful until his repose in 613, commemorated on April 22. His Life, written by his disciple George not long after his death, is an important historical source for the religious life of Asia Minor in this period.
