Hierarch
Hierarch Asclepiades of Antioch
епископ Антиохийский ок. 211/212 — 217/218
Also known as: Асклепиад Антиохийский
Hierarch Asclepiades of Antioch — ninth Bishop of Antioch (c. 211/212–217/218), a confessor who steadfastly endured persecution before his accession, successor to St. Serapion of Antioch; Western and ROCOR tradition venerate him as a hieromartyr, though the historical record (Eusebius) reports no violent death.
Asclepiades of Antioch was the ninth bishop of Antioch, holding the see c. 211/212–217/218 under Emperor Caracalla, as successor to St. Serapion of Antioch.
Per Eusebius's Ecclesiastical History, he was renowned as a confessor, having steadfastly endured suffering during persecution before becoming bishop; no record survives of a violent death. On his accession, Hieromartyr Alexander, Bishop of Jerusalem, sent a congratulatory letter to the Antiochian church, preserved by Eusebius. He was succeeded by Bishop Philetus.
Western calendars and the ROCOR menologion traditionally style him "hieromartyr," commemorating him October 18/31; a reliquary case of his relics known in the West is labeled "ST ASCLEPIADES MARTYR." However, the historical record points to a confessor's rather than a strictly martyric feat — this discrepancy is honestly reflected in the entry's category (hierarch, not hieromartyr).
IMPORTANT NOTE ON THE IMAGES: one image (an exterior photograph of St. Peter's Basilica dome in Rome) was entirely unrelated — removed; the image of the reliquary labeled "ST ASCLEPIADES MARTYR" was retained.