Ignatius of Antioch, the third bishop of Antioch and a disciple of John, was arrested under Trajan and led to Rome to be killed by wild beasts. Along the route, around 107-110 AD, he wrote seven letters: to the churches of Ephesus, Magnesia, Tralles, Rome, Philadelphia, Smyrna, and to Polycarp personally. The letters survive in three Greek recensions; the middle (shorter) is judged genuine.
Why this matters
A martyr-bishop's pastoral correspondence written within a decade of John's death. Names the church's offices (bishop, presbyters, deacons), the Eucharist as "the flesh of our Savior Jesus Christ," and refers to the Gospels and Pauline letters as already-circulating scripture.
Scripture references
Acts 11:26John 6:53-581 Timothy 3:1-13
Location
Various