St. Ignatius was the third bishop of Antioch, the first having been St. Peter. He was sent to Rome to be thrown to the beasts, and enroute he wrote seven famous letters to various churches encouraging fidelity to received doctrine and to the bishops.
Portraits of St. Ignatius in both East and West represent him as an old, white-bearded man being by attacked by two lions, one making for his feet and the other for his upper body.
Feast day: February 1
At left, an icon from the Holy Transfiguration Monastery, Brookline, MA, United States
Narrative images from San Clemente, Rome:
St.
Ignatius Takes Leave of St. Polycarp
St.
Ignatius Condemned by Trajan
St.
Ignatius Attacked by LionsHagiography:
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