Biography
Sagar of Laodicea
About Sagar of Laodicea
Sagar, also called Sagaris, is remembered as a bishop and martyr at Laodicea in Phrygia. The surviving evidence places him in the second-century Church, rather than among Paul’s personal disciples. Martiniano Roncaglia identifies the later apostolic association as the result of a chronological confusion.
Polycrates of Ephesus names Sagaris in a letter defending the Paschal practice followed by churches in Asia. He identifies him as a bishop and martyr resting at Laodicea, among Christian leaders whose memory carried authority. The letter includes him among those who observed Pascha on the fourteenth day, following their received rule of faith.
Melito of Sardis also recalled Sagaris’s martyrdom when describing a dispute about the Paschal celebration at Laodicea. Roncaglia explains that Ado later confused the proconsul mentioned in that testimony with Sergius Paulus in Acts, creating an unsupported link with the apostle Paul.
The Bollandist discussion likewise questions the claim that he had been Paul’s disciple and examines competing arguments about his death year. The ancient notices preserve his episcopal title and martyrdom without a detailed account of his personal life.
Nominis records his local commemoration on 6 October.
Wondering how to weigh the stories and sources? Learn how to read a saint biography.