Ignatius of Antioch
Ignatius of Antioch was an early Christian bishop and martyr, executed in Rome around 108 CE.
His letters, written while being transported to his death, are among the earliest Christian documents outside the New Testament.
They emphasize church hierarchy and the authority of bishops, and express his desire for martyrdom: I am God's wheat, ground by the teeth of beasts.
- EucharistSacramental bread and wine
- saintCanonized holy person
- TrajanSecond-century Roman emperor
- epistlesLiterary or formal letters
- bishopDiocesan clergy head
presbyter · lions · feast day · chains · Smyrna · relics · early Christianity · persecution · martyrdom · Church Fathers · church unity · Christology · diocese · patristic · hagiography · unity · ecclesiology · orthodox
- Christian MartyrsStephen, Sebastian, Lawrence, Felicity, Lucy
- MartyrsSaint Stephen, Saint Peter, Saint Sebastian, Saint Paul, Saint Lawrence
- Apostolic FathersBarnabas
- Church FathersAugustine, Ambrose, Jerome, Athanasius, Gregory
- Orthodox TheologiansAthanasius, Cyril of Alexandria
- patristicsChurch Fathers, church fathers, Cyril of Alexandria, Cappadocian Fathers, apostolic fathers
martyrdom and witness vs persecution and opposition
Ignatius of AntiochNero
Tyrannical first-century ruler
ecclesiastical authority and unity vs schism and fragmentation
Ignatius of Antiochschismatics
Those causing religious division