John of Damascus
John
of Damascus (676 - 749), was a Greek Orthodox priest who
served as an advisor in the court of the Muslim Caliph of Damascus. From the safety of the court, he was able to criticize the
Byzantine emperor Leo
III and iconoclasm, which he was promoting. In 730, he wrote Apologetic Treatises against
those Decrying the Holy Images. This was the very same year that the
pope in Rome excommunicated the emperor Leo.