Daily Saint

St. Theophilus of Antioch was one of the earliest bishops and Christian writers whose work helped explain and defend the Faith during the second century. Living only a few generations after the Apostles, he belonged to the generation of early Church leaders who preserved and handed on the teachings received from Christ and His Apostles.

Little is known about Theophilus’s early life, but he was born in a region of the East and originally followed pagan beliefs. According to his own writings, his conversion to Christianity came through his study of the Holy Scriptures and the fulfillment of biblical prophecies. He discovered in the writings of the prophets a truth that led him to faith in Jesus Christ.

Theophilus eventually became the sixth bishop of Antioch, succeeding a line of shepherds who guided one of the most important Christian communities of the ancient world. Antioch was a major center of early Christianity where the followers of Jesus were first called “Christians.”

As bishop, Theophilus defended the Faith against heresies, misunderstandings, and criticisms from pagan writers. His most famous surviving work, To Autolycus, was written as an explanation of Christianity to a pagan friend. In this work, he described the Christian belief in one God, defended the truth of Creation, explained the Resurrection, and offered one of the earliest Christian references to the Trinity.

Theophilus also emphasized that knowing God must lead to a transformed life. For him, faith was not merely an intellectual belief but a relationship that changed the heart and guided moral living.

St. Theophilus died around the year 183 after many years of serving as bishop. Though fewer details of his personal life survived, his writings provide a valuable glimpse into the faith of the early Church. He remains an important witness to the continuity of Christian teaching from the Apostolic age and to the challenges of the young Church in articulating the doctrines of the Faith in a pagan world.