The Ante-Nicene Church · AD 180–313
Pionius of Smyrna
d. c. 250 · Presbyter of Smyrna · Martyr of the Decian persecution · Smyrna
The Ante-Nicene Church
Who Pionius of Smyrna was
A learned presbyter of Smyrna arrested on the very anniversary of Polycarp’s martyrdom, whose detailed Acts — partly his own prison memoir — are among the most vivid of the age. Foreseeing his arrest, he and his companions Sabina and Asclepiades came to the market wearing woven chains, to warn the crowds not to sacrifice. His long courtroom speeches, defending the faith against both pagans and the lapsed, and his composed death by fire, made him Smyrna’s second great martyr; the Acts consciously echo Polycarp’s. The later copyist of Polycarp’s martyrdom claimed to preserve it through Pionius’s own transcription.
Also listed in martyrs and the decian persecution.
Common questions
When did Pionius die?
Pionius of Smyrna is dated d. c. 250 in the archive, which places Pionius 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.
What did Pionius write?
Pionius of Smyrna has 1 catalogued writing in the archive: The Martyrdom of Pionius (partly his prison memoir).
Which early sources mention Pionius?
Pionius of Smyrna is named in 3 primary-source passages catalogued here, drawn from The Smyrnaean record, Eusebius of Caesarea and The Hieronymian compilers. Every passage is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
Where was Pionius from?
The archive associates Pionius of Smyrna with Smyrna.
Writings (1)
The Martyrdom of Pionius (partly his prison memoir)
c. 250I am a Christian… If you wish to learn what my country is, it is the heavenly Jerusalem. I hold fast to God, by whom all things were made.Read the interlinear source text →
Primary-source mentions (3)
Every passage below is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
The Martyrdom of Pionius (the acta themselves, keeping Polycarp's anniversary)
c. AD 300Ecclesiastical History IV.15
c. AD 325In the same document concerning them there are recorded also other martyrdoms… among them being Pionius, who made many confessions and delivered discourses full of faith.Eusebius of Caesarea · IV.15 · source text
Martyrologium Hieronymianum (Pionius of Smyrna)
c. AD 450Connected in the archive
People
Events in this lifetime
- AD 180 · The Scillitan martyrs, AD 180
- 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
Place
Places served
The one place the sources put Pionius.