Makarios 9 was hegoumenos of the monastery of Pelekete (in Bithynia) and was the subject of a Life composed by one of his successors as hegoumenos, Sabas 11: Sabas, Acta S. Macarii (in Anal. Boll. 16 (1897), pp. 142-163). Makarios 9 was a native of Constantinople (πατρὶς μὲν γὰρ ἦν αὐτῷ τὸ Βυζάντιον): Acta S. Macarii 2 (p. 143, lines 19-20). His family was noble and had held imperial dignities: Acta S. Macarii 2, p. 143, lines 16-17 (γένους εὔκλειαν), lines 22-24 (πατέρες δὲ τούτῳ οὐκ ἀγενεῖς γεγονότες ... ταῖς γὰρ δοκούσαις βασιλικαῖς ἀξίαις τετιμημένοι). His original name was Christophoros: Acta S. Macarii 2, p. 144, lines 9-10 (Χριστοφόρος ... τοῦτο γὰρ αὐτῷ τοῦνομα τῶν κυρίων ἐτεθεῖτο), Acta S. Macarii 4, pp. 144-145 (cited below). He was orphaned at an early age and was then reared by an uncle (κομιδῇ νέος ὢν ἀπορφανισθείς, παρά τινι τῶν συγγενῶν τὰ τῆς νηπιότητος ἐπαιδαγωγεῖτο, ὃν θεῖον ἡ συνήθεια καλεῖν εἴωθεν): Acta S. Macarii 2, p. 143, lines 28-29. He was allegedly a quick learner and progressed rapidly, growing in both learning and in piety (ἐπεὶ δὲ τῶν ἁπάντων ἐφήψατο, καὶ ὡς ἐφικτὸν ἐκ τούτων τὰ χρήσιμα συνελέξατο, τῶν θύραθέν φημι, ... τοῖς ὑψηλοτέροις καὶ ἡμῶν τὴν σχολὴν ἀπένειμεν ἅπασαν): Acta S. Macarii 2, pp. 143, line 29 -144, line 9. He had a brother (ἀδελφῷ), who tried to force him into marriage; Makarios 9 however escaped and took up residence in a small cell close to a chapel, and refused to meet anyone except the local priest: Acta S. Macarii 2, p. 144, lines 11-17. He wanted to pursue a monastic life (πόθῳ τοῦ μονήρους ἐτέτρωτο βίου) and discussed the matter with the priest, who described to him the site of Pelekete; impressed by the site he determined to become a monk there: Acta S. Macarii 3, p. 144, line 24 - p. 145, line 15. He set out to surpass the other monks there in virtue and holiness: Acta S. Macarii 3, p. 145, lines 15-20. He was a close associate of one of them in particular, Ioannes 487: Acta S. Macarii 3, p. 145, lines 20-23. The hegoumenos (ὁ προεστὼς), observing that he spent much time with books of the Scriptures, entrusted him with the task of copying them out; this had already been a preoccupation of his and now became his daily task (τὴν τούτων γραφὴν αὐτῷ ἐνεχείρισεν, τῷ καὶ πρὸ τούτου τὴν μελέτην κατεξαίρετον ἐν ταύταις ποιουμένῳ - τῶν γὰρ καθ' ἡμέραν ἀγώνων τὸ τέλος ἡ τῶν θείων λογίων διεδέχετο ἄσκησις): Acta S. Macarii 3, p. 145, lines 23-31. In view of his application and growing experience he was unanimously chosen to assume the full status of a monk (τὸ ἀγγελικὸν τῶν μοναζόντων περιβαλέσθαι σχῆμα); he now abandoned the name Christophoros and assumed instead the name Makarios: Acta S. Macarii 4, pp. 145, line 32 - 146, line 3 (Οὕτω μὲν οὖν Χριστοφόρος τὴν θείαν στόλην περιβαλλόμενος, Μακάριος τὴν κλῆσιν ἀντονομάζεται, ὅρῳ καὶ νόμῳ τῶν μοναζόντων), cf. lines 24-25 (Καταλεγεὶς οὖν Μακάριος εἰς τὸν χορὸν τῶν ἁγίων). He was now chosen to be deacon attending the ceremonies in church: Acta S. Macarii 4, p. 146, lines 27-31 (Ἐπεὶ οὖν τὰ πρωτεῖα τῶν ἀγώνων παρὰ τοῖς συνοῦσιν ἄγων ὡρᾶτο, τοῖς τῆς ἐκκλησίας τύποις διακονεῖν ὑπ' αὐτῶν κατεψηφίσθη. Οὕτω τοίνυν τοῦ κανόνος ἄρχειν ἐπιτετραμμένος πρὸς οὐδὲν ἄλλο τὸν νοῦν ἀπησχόλει, πλὴν τῆς προκειμένης καὶ μελετωμένης τῶν θείων λειτουργίας). After the zeal which he displayed in carrying out these duties, he was chosen, allegedly against his will, to be the oikonomos of the monastery: Acta S. Macarii 4, p. 147, lines 23-25 (τούτου τοίνυν τὸ πάγιον πρὸς ἀρετὴν ὁ τῶν πατέρων χορὸς κατιδών, οἰκονομεῖν αὐτῷ τὰ τῆς ποίμνης ἐνεχείρισεν, οὐ βουλομένῳ μὲν οὐδὲ θέλοντι, βίᾳ δ' οὖν ὅμως πρὸς τοῦτο κατηνάγκασεν). Not long afterwards, again against his wishes, he was appointed hegoumenos of the monastery: Acta S. Macarii 4, p. 147, lines 25-27 (οὐ πλείστου δὲ τοῦ μεταξὺ διαδραμόντος χρόνου, καὶ τὴν ἡγεμονίαν τῇ αὐτῇ τῶν προτρεπομένων διαδέχεται βίᾳ).

Hegoumenos of the monastery of Pelekete: Acta S. Macarii, title (βίος καὶ πολιτεία τοῦ ὁσίου πατρὸς ἡμῶν καὶ ὁμολογητοῦ Μακαρίου, ἡγουμένου γεγονότος μονῆς τῆς ἐπονομαζομένης Πελεκητῆς). He became famous for his power over demons and for his ability to heal the sick: Acta S. Macarii 4, pp. 147, line 34 - 148, line 2. He cured Paulos 10 and then visited Constantinople (πρὸς τῇ βασιλίδι), where he also cured the wives of Paulos 10 (Anonyma 100) and of Theognostos 17: Acta S. Macarii 5-6, pp. 148-149. While in Constantinople he was summoned to meet the patriarch Tarasios 1, who confirmed him as hegoumenos and, again against his wishes, ordained him priest; Makarios 9 then returned to his flock: Acta S. Macarii 7, p. 149, lines 14-16 (τὴν ἡγεμονίαν ἐπικυροῖ, καὶ πρὸς ταύτῃ τὴν τοῦ διαβόλου χειροτονίαν ἐκβιάσας αὐτῷ ἐπιτίθησιν), cf. line 18 (ἱερωσύνῃ καὶ τοῖς λοιποῖς χαρίσμασι κεκοσμημένος). During the iconoclast persecution under Leo V (Leo 15), Makarios 9 was imprisoned and subject to promises and to threats by an imperial messenger and by Iannes (Ioannes 5), but he refused to reject the veneration of icons and was finally sent into exile: Acta S. Macarii 10-11, pp. 153-156. His successors now were Anonymus 697 and then Sergios 104: Theod. Stud., Ep. 501. Makarios 9 was exiled to the Propontis where, after the death of Leo 15, he met and spent some time with the exiled patriarch Nikephoros 2; he also began to construct a monastery, which was completed by the monks who were with him, and where he introduced the rules and practices of his former monastery: Acta S. Macarii 12, p. 156, lines 16-25, cf. lines 21-22 (μονὴν οἰκοδομεῖν ἐνήρξατο ἐν τῷ τῆς Προποντίδος πορθμῷ ἐν ᾧ τὰ τῆς ἐξορίας διετέλει). Under the emperor Theophilos 5 Makarios 9 was allegedly summoned to a disputation on the subject of the veneration of icons; he debated with a prefect and afterwards was flogged and imprisoned: Acta S. Macarii 13, pp. 157-159. He shared his captivity with a number of Paulicians, one of whom he converted; the others were all executed: Acta S. Macarii 14, p. 159. His outspokenness even in prison led to a further exile and he was sent to Aphousia (an inaccessible island in the Propontis); there he ended a famine, persuading the wealthy to release supplies from their stores, and also began the construction of a new church, persuading the locals to make use of some existing foundations: Acta S. Macarii 15, pp. 159-160, 16, p. 160, lines 9-17. His death from illness is recorded at Acta S. Macarii 16, pp. 161, line 5 - 162, line 15 (τὸ σῶμα τῆς νόσου κετεπειγούσης). He died on 18 August: Acta S. Macarii 16, p. 162, lines 11-12 (Μετέστη δὲ μηνὶ πανέμῳ ὀγδόῃ καὶ δεκάτῃ, ὃν Ῥωμαῖοι αὔγουστον καλοῦσιν). The year is unknown but was apparently during the reign of Theophilos 5 (829/842). He was succeeded as hegoumenos by the author of the Acta, Sabas 11: Acta S. Macarii 23, p. 163, lines 25-26 (ὁ οὐκ ἄξιος τῆς ποίμνης σου διάδοχος). At his death his two leading disciples were Dorotheos 8 and Sabas 11: Acta S. Macarii 16, p. 162, line 4. Cf. also Gregorios 137.

Makarios 9 was the addressee of five letters from Theodore the Stoudite (Theodoros 15) written between 816 and 818; several were replies to letters from Makarios 9 himself: Theod. Stud., Epp. 159, pp. 280-281 (a. 816); 230, pp. 362-364 (summer/autumn 816); 294, pp. 433-434 (816/818); 362, p. 496 (a. 818); 371, pp. 502-503 (a. 818) (all addressed Μακαρίῳ ἡγουμένῳ). He is mentioned in two more letters of Theodoros 15, Epp. 267, pp. 394-395 (late 816/early 817); 501, pp. 741-742 (a. 823). An iconophile, he was imprisoned in 816 during the iconoclast persecution under Leo 15, and was later sent into exile: Theod. Stud., Epp. 159, 230, 267, 371.

See also Synax. Eccl. Const. 577-580.

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