I noticed that Photius is an Orthodox Saint. Now, from what I read Photius was not the greatest person and it seems to me that some of his actions didn’t do much to serve Christ and his Church. So on one hand I wonder, why is he a saint?
The Byzantine Ruthenian Catholic Church also venerates St. Photius, and he is on the calendar of saints.
Please be advised that most of the literature written against him is highly polemical in nature, and distorts the facts of his case. Francis Dvornik, one of the greatest Church historians of modern times, has demonstrated that many of the charges against Photius are simply myths with no factual basis. I would recommend reading his book on the subject, “The Photian Schism.”
Some of Photius’s theological opinions were somewhat reactionary, but he was not canonized because of his theological reasoning, but because of his personal holiness. In particular, Photius had a zeal for evangelization, and it was him who sent SS. Cyril and Methodius on their mission to the Slavs.