Description

St. Ignatius of Antioch (c. AD 35–107), honoured as Hieromartyr and God-Bearer (Θεοφόρος), was an early bishop of Antioch and a disciple of St. John the Theologian. He shepherded one of the most important early Christian communities and defended the unity of the Church, the authority of the episcopacy and the true Incarnation, Passion and Resurrection of Christ. While being taken under guard from Syria to Rome, he wrote seven surviving epistles which remain precious witnesses to the faith, worship and order of the apostolic Church.

Under Emperor Trajan, Ignatius refused to renounce Christ and was condemned to be devoured by wild beasts in Rome. The icon depicts the holy bishop in the arena as lions carry out his martyrdom, rather than seeking escape, he understood his suffering as the final offering of a life already given completely to Christ, famously comparing himself to wheat ground by the teeth of beasts so that he might become pure bread for God. His martyrdom therefore expresses neither defeat nor despair, but his passage through suffering into eternal communion with the Lord whom he bore faithfully in his heart.

Icon Source & Historical Details

Location: Dionysiou Monastery, Mount Athos

Iconographer: -

Date: 16th century

Tradition: Cretan

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