St. Ignatius of Antioch (died about 107) was the bishop of Antioch, the city where the followers of Jesus were first called Christians, and a disciple of the apostles who was taken under armed guard to Rome to be thrown to the wild beasts. On the way he wrote seven letters to the churches that are among the most precious writings of the early Church: in them he is the first writer known to call the Church “Catholic,” and he begged the Christians of Rome not to save him, because “I am the wheat of God.” His feast day is October 17. Below are his story, his most famous words, what he is the patron saint of, and a prayer to St. Ignatius of Antioch.
A short prayer to St. Ignatius of Antioch, written for this page:
St. Ignatius, you longed to be ground like wheat to become the pure bread of Christ.
Pray for us, that we may love the Eucharist, stay united with our bishops,
and never be ashamed to be called Christians. Amen.
Who was St. Ignatius of Antioch?
Ignatius, who also called himself Theophorus, “God-bearer,” was the third bishop of Antioch in Syria, after St. Peter and Evodius, and according to tradition he knew the apostles. During the reign of the emperor Trajan he was arrested and condemned to die in the arena at Rome. Guarded by ten soldiers, he traveled across Asia Minor, and Christians came out to meet him along the way. At Smyrna he was welcomed by its bishop, St. Polycarp. From Smyrna and Troas he wrote seven letters: to the Ephesians, Magnesians, Trallians, Romans, Philadelphians and Smyrnaeans, and one to Polycarp. He was martyred in Rome, torn by wild beasts, about the year 107. His name is remembered in the Roman Canon of the Mass.
“I am the wheat of God”
Afraid that the Christians of Rome would try to win his release, Ignatius wrote to them begging them to let him die for Christ (Epistle to the Romans, ch. 4):
I write to the churches, and impress on them all, that I shall willingly die for God, unless ye hinder me. I beseech of you not to show an unseasonable good-will towards me. Suffer me to become food for the wild beasts, through whose instrumentality it will be granted me to attain to God. I am the wheat of God, and let me be ground by the teeth of the wild beasts, that I may be found the pure bread of Christ. Rather entice the wild beasts, that they may become my tomb, and may leave nothing of my body; so that when I have fallen asleep [in death], I may be no trouble to any one. Then shall I truly be a disciple of Christ, when the world shall not see so much as my body. Entreat Christ for me, that by these instruments I may be found a sacrifice [to God]. I do not, as Peter and Paul, issue commandments unto you. They were apostles; I am but a condemned man: they were free, while I am, even until now, a servant. But when I suffer, I shall be the freed-man of Jesus, and shall rise again emancipated in Him. And now, being a prisoner, I learn not to desire anything worldly or vain.
His teaching
- The Catholic Church. “Wherever the bishop shall appear, there let the multitude of the people also be; even as, wherever Jesus Christ is, there is the Catholic Church” (to the Smyrnaeans, 8), the earliest known use of the phrase.
- The Eucharist. He calls the Eucharist “the medicine of immortality” (to the Ephesians, 20) and “the flesh of our Saviour Jesus Christ” (to the Smyrnaeans, 7).
- Unity with the bishop. Over and over he urges Christians to do nothing apart from the bishop, the priests and the deacons.
- The real humanity of Jesus. Against those who said Christ only seemed to suffer, he insists that He was truly born of Mary, truly crucified and truly risen.
See the prayer before Communion and Eucharistic adoration prayers.
What is St. Ignatius of Antioch the patron saint of?
St. Ignatius of Antioch is honored as a patron of the Church in the eastern Mediterranean and North Africa, and is invoked by those who suffer for their faith and by all who long for a deeper love of the Eucharist.
Feast day
The memorial of St. Ignatius of Antioch is October 17. Before 1969 it was kept on February 1. Do not confuse him with St. Ignatius of Loyola, founder of the Jesuits, whose feast is July 31; see the St. Ignatius of Loyola prayer.
Frequently asked questions
When is the feast of St. Ignatius of Antioch?
October 17.
What did St. Ignatius of Antioch write?
Seven letters, written on his way to martyrdom in Rome about 107, to six churches and to St. Polycarp.
Who first called the Church “Catholic”?
St. Ignatius of Antioch, in his letter to the Smyrnaeans, about the year 107.
More early Church saints
- St. Justin Martyr
- St. Irenaeus
- St. John Chrysostom
- St. Polycarp
- Sts. Perpetua and Felicity
- St. Ignatius of Loyola prayer
- Prayer before Communion
- Saint of the day
- Saint feast days
Texts and sources
- St. Ignatius of Antioch, Epistle to the Romans, ch. 4, trans. A. Roberts and J. Donaldson, Ante-Nicene Christian Library (1867), public domain (Wikisource).