Kyle Dresback

Friends,

Today we remember Ignatius, Bishop of Antioch, an influential figure during an especially formative moment in the early Church.

Living in the generation after the apostles, Ignatius witnessed the Church’s transformation from a local “neighborhood” gathering to an identifiable, empire-wide movement.

One defining feature of that Church was its defiance of Rome’s story of its own authority.

Christians renounced Rome’s sacred symbols, refusing to offer sacrifices and venerate the emperor. This unpatriotic behavior got the attention of many, including the emperor, Trajan.

Around 107 CE, while Trajan was in the region on a military campaign, Ignatius—the elderly bishop of Antioch—was arrested and condemned to execution in Rome.

Normally such a sentence would have been carried out locally, but in good Roman fashion Trajan preferred a public spectacle and Ignatius was sent to Rome to be executed in the arena at an upcoming military celebration.

It is because of this long journey from Antioch to Rome that we know Ignatius as well as we do. Along the way he wrote letters to believers across Asia Minor, encouraging them and reflecting on his union with the suffering and risen Christ.

In one memorable passage to the Ephesians he compares the Church to a symphony of instruments under the direction of the bishop: 

“In your concord and harmonious love, Jesus Christ is sung.” 

The image is of unity, not enforced by violence or coercion, but attuned to the Spirit in love and animated by the crucified and risen Lord.

It’s a beautiful reversal of the empire’s model of power. Against the backdrop of loyalty forced by violence, Ignatius offers a vision of a people faithful to Christ the true king, living in tune with the Spirit of a God who opposes the wielding of worldly power.

Thanks be to God for this bishop and martyr who in his imitation of Christ reminds the Church of what it can be.

In Christ,

—Kyle