The Ante-Nicene Church · AD 180–313
Demetrianus of Antioch
d. c. 256 · Bishop of Antioch · Antioch
The Ante-Nicene Church
Who Demetrianus of Antioch was
Bishop of Antioch succeeding the martyred Fabius in the aftermath of the Decian persecution, holding the see through the Valerian years. Cyprian addressed a treatise to a pagan namesake, but this Demetrianus is the Antiochene bishop of Eusebius’s list; his episcopate bridges Babylas’s martyrdom and the troubled reign of Paul of Samosata. A name recovered from the succession of a church repeatedly decapitated by persecution.
Also listed in the bishops of Antioch.
Common questions
When did Demetrianus die?
Demetrianus of Antioch is dated d. c. 256 in the archive, which places Demetrianus in the Ante-Nicene Church (AD 180–313). The dating is traditional and approximate; the archive marks it as uncertain rather than fixing a year the sources do not give.
Which early sources mention Demetrianus?
Demetrianus of Antioch is named in 2 primary-source passages catalogued here, drawn from Eusebius of Caesarea and Jerome of Stridon. Every passage is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
Where was Demetrianus from?
The archive associates Demetrianus of Antioch with Antioch.
Who were Demetrianus’ contemporaries?
The archive links Demetrianus of Antioch to 4 other figures, including Babylas of Antioch, Paul of Samosata, Domnus of Antioch and Fabius of Antioch. 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.
Ecclesiastical History VII.5, 14
c. AD 325At Antioch, Demetrianus succeeded Fabius in the episcopate.Eusebius of Caesarea · 14 · source text
Chronicle of Jerome (the Antiochene succession)
c. AD 380Connected in the archive
People
Events in this lifetime
- AD 190 · The Quartodeciman controversy, AD 190
- AD 202 · Perpetua and Felicity martyred, AD 202
- AD 235 · Maximinus Thrax targets the clergy, AD 235
- AD 250 · The Decian persecution, AD 250
- AD 251 · The Novatianist schism, AD 251
Place
Places served
The one place the sources put Demetrianus.