The letters of Ignatius of Antioch drop us into Christianity at its most fragile moment, when the apostles are gone, persecution is real, and faith must survive without safety, prestige, or power. Written around 107–110 AD as Ignatius is escorted under guard from Antioch to Rome to be executed, these seven letters are not theoretical theology but pastoral urgency—calls to unity, warnings against false teaching, and a fierce insistence that Christ truly suffered in the flesh. Ignatius writes as a bishop who knows he will die and refuses rescue, longing instead to imitate Christ fully, even in martyrdom, because he believes the Church is preserved not by novelty or force but by faithfulness, ordered love, and visible unity around bishop, presbyters, and deacons. In Ignatius we see a Church still close to the apostles, already structured, already sacramental, already confessing Christ as fully God and fully man, and willing to lose everything rather than lose Him (John 12:24; Philippians 1:21).
Readings:
Ignatius of Antioch, Letters to the Ephesians, Magnesians, Trallians, Romans, Philadelphians, Smyrnaeans, and Polycarp
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