Philogonius of Antioch

Philogonius (or Filogonius, Philogonus, Philogonios, ; died 322) was a lawyer and an early Bishop of Antioch who came to be considered a saint. He opposed Arianism when that heresy emerged in Alexandria, Egypt. His feast day is 20 December.

Outline Philogonius was a successful advocate at the bar of Antioch. He was known for his eloquence, moral integrity and Christian faith. He married and had a daughter, but became a monk and ascetic after his wife died. In 318 when Vitalius I died Philogonius was made Bishop of Antioch without first becoming a priest. When Arius (256–336) began to preach his heresy at Alexandria in 318, Pope Alexander I of Alexandria sent a synodal letter condemning him to Philogonius, who defended the orthodox faith against the heresy. Philogonius lived through the attacks on the church by Roman emperors Maximinus Daza (r. 310–313) and Licinius (r. 308–324).

He died in 322.

Monks of Ramsgate account The monks of St Augustine's Abbey, Ramsgate, wrote in their Book of Saints (1921):

Butler's account The hagiographer Alban Butler (1710–1773) wrote in his Lives of the fathers, martyrs, and other principal saints,

Weninger's account Francis Xavier Weninger (1805–1888) wrote in his Lives of the Saints (1876):

Notes and references