The Apologists · AD 130–180
Sagaris of Laodicea
d. c. AD 166 (martyr) · Bishop of Laodicea · Martyr · Laodicea, Asia
The Apologists
Who Sagaris of Laodicea was
Bishop-martyr of Laodicea, killed under the proconsul Sergius Paulus — Melito dates his own Paschal writings by the martyrdom, and Polycrates counts him among Asia's sleeping luminaries.
Also listed in martyrs, bishops beyond the great sees and under marcus aurelius.
Common questions
When did Sagaris die?
Sagaris of Laodicea is dated d. c. AD 166 (martyr) in the archive, which places Sagaris in the Apologists (AD 130–180). 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 Sagaris?
Sagaris of Laodicea is named in 2 primary-source passages catalogued here, drawn from Melito of Sardis and Polycrates of Ephesus. Every passage is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
Where was Sagaris from?
The archive associates Sagaris of Laodicea with Laodicea, Asia. The sources record more than one location, so the places are listed in the order the record moves through them.
Who were Sagaris’ contemporaries?
The archive links Sagaris of Laodicea to 2 other figures, including Polycrates of Ephesus and Melito of Sardis. 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.
Melito, On the Pascha fragment, via Ecclesiastical History IV.26 ('when Sagaris suffered')
c. AD 170In the time when Servillius Paulus was proconsul of Asia, at the time when Sagaris suffered martyrdom, there arose in Laodicea a great strife concerning the passover.Melito of Sardis · Ecclesiastical History IV.26 · source text
Polycrates to Victor, via Ecclesiastical History V.24
c. AD 195…and Sagaris, bishop and martyr, who sleeps at Laodicea.Polycrates of Ephesus · V.24 · source text
Connected in the archive
People
Events in this lifetime
- AD 96 · Rome writes to Corinth: 1 Clement, AD 96
- 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
Place
Places served
The 2 places the sources put Sagaris, in the order the record moves through them. This is what the sources attest, not a reconstructed route.