Ignatius of Antioch

Third bishop of Antioch and one of the earliest Church Fathers, traditionally held to be a direct disciple of the Apostle John. While being transported to Rome under armed guard to face execution in the Colosseum, Ignatius wrote seven extraordinary letters to churches across Asia Minor and Rome. These letters — written around 108 AD — contain the earliest non-biblical use of the word 'Christian,' the first known reference to the 'catholic church' as a description of the universal body of believers, and passionate affirmations of Christ's real humanity and divinity against early Gnostic denials. He begged the Roman Christians not to intervene to save him, writing 'I am the wheat of God, and I am ground by the teeth of wild beasts that I may be found pure bread of Christ.' His martyrdom in the arena became a powerful witness that shaped the early Church's theology of suffering.