Heron of Antioch

The holy hieromartyr Heron (Herodion) of Antioch was a bishop of Antioch in the second century, successor of Saint Ignatius the God-⁠bearer on the throne of the city. He is commemorated on 17 October.

Heron was a disciple of Saint Ignatius and, according to Eusebius, was ordained deacon by him. He is counted as the fourth bishop of Antioch. Little is known of his life; we learn of him from the Chronicle of Sextus Africanus, preserved in the Chronicle of George Syncellus, and Eusebius of Caesarea mentions him in the Ecclesiastical History on the basis of Africanus.

The sources do not agree on the length of his episcopate. According to Eusebius he was raised to the see in 116 and held it for twenty years, until his death in 136, while according to Africanus he shepherded the Church for twenty-⁠nine years, from 107 to 136. His predecessor was Ignatius and his successor Cornelius. He died a martyr: some sources place his death in 127 and others in 136.

His memory is kept on 17 October; according to the Roman Martyrology of 1806 this was the day of his birth into heaven, while the Martyrology of Bede gives 16 October. Other lists commemorate him on 27 October.