Daily Saint

St. Ignatius of Antioch was one of the earliest bishops and Christian writers after the Apostles. Born in Syria, he became the third Bishop of Antioch, succeeding St. Evodius.

Antioch was an important center of early Christianity, where outsiders first began calling the disciples of Jesus Christians. Ignatius was the first early Church Father to refer to the Apostolic Church as the Catholic Church when he wrote, “Wherever the bishop appears, there let the people be, even as wherever Jesus Christ is, there is the Catholic Church.”

During the persecution under the Roman Emperor Trajan, Ignatius was arrested and condemned to die in Rome. He was escorted to the imperial city by Roman soldiers, making a long and difficult journey through Asia Minor. Along the way, he received visits from Christian communities, and he used these encounters to encourage the faithful.

During his journey, he wrote seven surviving letters: to the Christians of Ephesus, Magnesia, Tralles, Rome, Philadelphia, and Smyrna, and to St. Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna. These writings are among the most important surviving writings from the Apostolic Fathers, who immediately followed the Apostles.

Ignatius urged Christians to remain united in Christ and obedient to their bishops. He spoke with clarity about the Eucharist, calling it the Body of Christ. His letters provide early testimony to the Church’s sacramental life and hierarchical structure.

St. Ignatius accepted his impending death as a means of following Christ’s example through martyrdom. Wild beasts killed him in what is now known as the Colosseum in Rome around the year 108. He is part of a primary group of Church leaders known as the Apostolic Fathers, who lived and wrote during the generation immediately following the Apostles.