The Apologists · AD 130–180
Alcibiades of Lyon
d. AD 177 (confessor of the Lyon company) · Ascetic confessor of Lyon · Lyon, Gaul
The Apologists
Who Alcibiades of Lyon was
An ascetic among the imprisoned confessors of 177 who ate only bread and water — until, after a revelation to Attalus that he grieved others by refusing God's creatures, he 'partook of all things freely and gave thanks to God.' Asceticism corrected inside a death cell.
Also listed in desert fathers & mothers.
Common questions
When did Alcibiades die?
Alcibiades of Lyon is dated d. AD 177 (confessor of the Lyon company) in the archive, which places Alcibiades in the Apologists (AD 130–180).
Which early sources mention Alcibiades?
Alcibiades of Lyon is named in 2 primary-source passages catalogued here, drawn from The churches of Lyon & Vienne and The Hieronymian compilers. Every passage is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
Where was Alcibiades from?
The archive associates Alcibiades of Lyon with Lyon, Gaul. The sources record more than one location, so the places are listed in the order the record moves through them.
Who were Alcibiades’ contemporaries?
The archive links Alcibiades of Lyon to 3 other figures, including Attalus of Pergamum, Blandina of Lyon and Pothinus of Lyon. Each connection is drawn from a source that places them together, not from inference.
Primary-source mentions (2)
Every passage below is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
Letter of Lyon & Vienne, via Ecclesiastical History V.3
c. AD 177It was revealed to Attalus after his first conflict in the amphitheatre that Alcibiades was not doing well in refusing the creatures of God… and Alcibiades obeyed, and partook of all things without restraint, giving thanks to God.The churches of Lyon & Vienne · source text
Martyrologium Hieronymianum (the Forty-Eight of Lyon, 2 June)
c. AD 450Connected in the archive
People
Events in this lifetime
- AD 112 · Pliny writes Trajan, AD 112
- AD 117 · Symeon and Ignatius martyred, AD 117
- AD 135 · Bar Kokhba crushed; Aelia Capitolina, AD 135
- AD 144 · Marcion expelled at Rome, AD 144
- AD 156 · The New Prophecy erupts, AD 156
- AD 177 · Persecution at Lyon and Vienne, AD 177
Place
Places served
The 2 places the sources put Alcibiades, in the order the record moves through them. This is what the sources attest, not a reconstructed route.