MARTYRDOM OF SAINT IEROMARTYR IGNATIUS THE THEOPHORUS
(Hefele, *Patr. apost.*, 3rd ed., Tübingen 1847, in-8°)
I. *Ignatius’ pastoral care and longing for martyrdom.*
When Trajan had not long before taken up the rule of the Romans, Ignatius, a disciple of the Apostle John, was a man apostolic in all things. A He was pastoring the Church of the Antiochians with great care, having with difficulty weathered the old tempests of the many persecutions under Domitian, just as a good pilot, with the rudder of prayer and fasting, and with assiduity in teaching, and by a constant intensity of the spirit, resisted the opposing storm; fearing lest he should lose any of the faint-hearted or simpler ones. Therefore, he rejoiced indeed at the tranquility of the Church, with the persecution resting for a short time; but he grieved in his soul, because he had not yet attained to the true charity B toward Christ, nor to the perfect order of a disciple. For he reflected in his mind that, by the confession which is made through martyrdom, he would become more like Christ. C Whence, remaining for a few years still in the Church, and like a divine lamp illuminating the understanding of each person through the interpretation of the divine Scriptures, he became master of his own prayers.
II. *Ignatius is condemned by Trajan.*
For after this, in the ninth year of his reign, Trajan, having been exalted by his victory over the Scythians and the Dacians and many other D nations...
and thinking that there were still lacking to his complete subjection the pious system of the Christians, and having threatened that if they would not choose the worship of demons, A they must yield along with all the nations to endure persecution, he compelled all who lived piously either to sacrifice or to die. Then, therefore, fearing for the Church of the Antiochenes, the noble soldier of Christ was led voluntarily to Trajan, who was staying at that time in Antioch, but was hastening to go against Armenia and the Parthians.
And when he stood in the presence of the Emperor Trajan, he said, "Who are you, wretched man, who are eager to transgress our decrees, and at the same time persuade others to perish miserably?"
Ignatius replied: "No one calls Theophorus a wretched man; for the demons have departed from the servants of God. But if, because I am hostile to them, you call me an evildoer towards the demons, I confess it. For having Christ as my heavenly King, I dissolve their plots."
Trajan said, "And who is Theophorus?"
Ignatius replied: "He who has Christ in his breast." B
Trajan said, "Do we not seem to you, then, to have gods in our minds, whom we also use as allies against our enemies?"
Ignatius replied: "You err in calling the demons of the nations gods; for there is one God who made heaven and earth and sea and all things that are in them; and one Christ Jesus, the only-begotten Son of God, whose kingdom may I enjoy!"
Trajan said, "Do you speak of Him who was crucified under Pontius Pilate?"
Ignatius replied: "I speak of Him who took my sin upon the cross along with its inventor, and who, condemning all demonic error and malice, subjected it to the feet of those who bear Him in their hearts."
Trajan said, "Do you therefore carry within yourself the crucified one?"
Ignatius replied: "Yes; for it is written: 'I will dwell in them and walk among them.'" C
Trajan pronounced sentence: "We command that Ignatius, who says that he carries within himself the crucified one, be bound in chains by soldiers and led to great Rome, to become food for beasts for the enjoyment of the people."
When the holy martyr heard this sentence, he cried out with joy: "I thank you, O Master, that You have deigned to honor me with complete love for You, having bound me in iron chains together with Your apostle Paul." D
Having said these things, and having gladly taken on the bonds, and having first prayed for the Church and commended it with tears to the Lord, like an excellent ram heading a good flock, he was seized by the beast-like ferocity of the soldiers, to be led away to Rome for food for bloodthirsty beasts.
III. S. Ignatius sails to Smyrna.
With great readiness and joy, therefore, and with a desire to suffer, he descended from Antioch to Seleucia, and from thence he set sail; and after many toils, having arrived at the city of the Smyrneans, A he descended from the ship with great joy, and hastened to see the holy Polycarp, the bishop of the Smyrneans, who was his fellow-disciple; for they had both long ago been disciples of the holy apostle John. Having lodged with him, and having shared with him in spiritual gifts, and even priding himself on his chains, he besought him to assist his purpose; and he mainly besought the whole Church (for the cities and Churches of Asia were receiving the holy man through their bishops, presbyters, and deacons, for all were hastening to him, if by any means they might receive a portion of a spiritual gift), but especially the holy Polycarp, so that by means of the beasts he might quickly become hidden from the world and appear before the face of Christ. B
IV. Ignatius writes to the Churches, especially the Roman.
And these things he said, and thus he testified, extending his love for Christ so much that he was about to grasp heaven through his good confession and the zeal of those who were praying with him for his struggle, and that he might render a reward to the Churches that had met him through their leaders, by sending letters of thanksgiving to them, from which spiritual grace distilled together with prayers and exhortations. Seeing, therefore, that all were kindly disposed toward him, he feared lest the affection of the brethren might cut short his zeal toward the Lord, now that the beautiful gate of martyrdom had been opened to him. The things which he wrote to the Church of the Romans follow.
Here the Epistle of S. Ignatius to the Romans is read. See above, col. 685.
V. Ignatius is led from Smyrna to Rome.
After, therefore, as he desired, he had settled the resisting brethren in Rome by his epistle, he set sail from Smyrna (for the Christ-bearer C was being urged by the soldiers to reach the spectacles in great Rome, so that, being given over to wild beasts before the eyes of the Roman people, he might obtain the crown of the struggle), and arrived at Troas. Thence, being led to Neapolis, he journeyed through Philippi in Macedonia, and to that part of Epirus which is situated near Epidamnus, D and finding a ship in the maritime places, he sailed the
Adriatic Sea, and thence entering the Tyrrhenian, passed by islands and cities. Being shown to the holy man at Puteoli, he himself indeed longed to go ashore, as he wished to walk in the footsteps of the apostle Paul. But when a A violent wind falling upon them did not permit it—the ship being urged on from the stern—he blessed the love of the brethren in that place, and thus sailed past. Therefore, in one day and the same night, we were borne along by favorable winds, we indeed against our will, groaning at the separation from that just man which was soon to come upon us. But to him the matter was turning out according to his prayer, as he was hastening to depart from the world more quickly, that he might reach the Lord whom he loved. For when he had sailed into the ports of the Romans, as the unclean parade was about to end, the soldiers were vexed at the delay, but the bishop, rejoicing, obeyed those who were urging him on.
VI. Ignatius Devoured by Beasts at Rome
B Thence they went from him to that which is called Portus (for the fame of the holy martyr was already spread abroad). We met with the brethren who were filled with fear and joy—rejoicing indeed that they had been deemed worthy of the fellowship of the Theophorus, but fearing because such a man was being led to death. He also instructed some who were fervent and saying that they would quiet the people so that they would not seek the destruction of the just man, to remain quiet. And he, having immediately perceived the matter by the Spirit, and having embraced all, and having asked from them true love—conversing with them more than he had in his epistle, and having persuaded them not to begrudge him his haste toward the Lord—thus, after the kneeling of all the brethren, and after he had prayed to the Son of God for the Churches, for the cessation of the persecution, C and for the love of the brethren toward one another, he was led with haste to the amphitheater. Then, immediately cast in according to the former mandate of Caesar, as the games were about to end (for it was a famous day, as they supposed, that which is called in the Roman tongue the thirteenth, on which they were zealously assembled), he was thus thrown to the fierce beasts beside the temple, so that the desire of the holy martyr Ignatius might be fulfilled, according to that which is written: "The desire of the just is acceptable," and so that he might not become burdensome to any of the brethren by the collection of his remains, just as he had earlier desired in his epistle that his consummation might take place. For only the harder parts of his holy remains were left, which were taken to D Antioch and deposited in a linen cloth, as a treasure
A inestimable, left to the holy Church by the grace that was in the martyr.
VII. Ignatius appears after death to those who are sleeping.
These things happened on the thirteenth day before the Kalends of January, that is, the twentieth of December, when Sura and Senecio were consuls among the Romans for the second time. We ourselves were witnesses of these things, and having passed the whole night in tears, and having prayed on bended knees with much entreaty to the Lord that He might certify us weak ones concerning what had happened, and having fallen asleep for a little while, some of us suddenly saw the blessed Ignatius standing over us and embracing us, while others again beheld him praying for us, and others still saw him dripping with sweat, as if he had come from much labor and was standing by the Lord. B Having, therefore, seen these things with great joy, and having compared the visions of our dreams, we praised God, the giver of all good things, and pronounced the holy man blessed; and we have made known to you both the day and the time, that, assembling ourselves together at the time of his martyrdom, we may have communion with the athlete and noble martyr of Christ, who trampled upon the devil and finished his course of desire, begotten of the love of Christ, in Christ Jesus our Lord, by whom and with whom to the Father be glory and power with the Holy Spirit, for ever. Amen.
MARTYRDOM OF SAINT IGNATIUS
BISHOP OF ANTIOCH IN SYRIA
From an ancient interpretation, found in the Cottonian manuscripts, and first published by James Ussher.
(GALLAND., Vet. Patr. Biblioth., I, 299, Venice 1765, in-folio.)
CAPUT I. C
When Trajan assumed the empire of the Romans, Ignatius, the disciple of Saint John the apostle and evangelist—a man in all things apostolic—undertook to govern the Church of the Antiochenes, which had long been agitated by storms and persecutions. Like a good helmsman, he repelled all assaults by his prayers and fastings, and by constant teaching and spiritual labor he turned aside the storm that hung over them by his own virtue; fearing D lest he might lose any one who was faint-hearted or infirm. Finally, he rejoiced in the steadfastness of the Church, when it rested for a little while from persecution. He also considered within himself that he could never truly attain to the love of God, nor reach the perfect order of doctrine, unless he approached the Lord through the confession made by martyrdom. Wherefore, remaining for a few years in the Church, he, as a deific lamp, merited by his constant prayers to illuminate the hearts of each one through the exposition of the Scriptures.
A with your apostle Paul, to be bound in iron chains." Saying this, and receiving the chains with gladness, and praying first for the Church, and commending it with tears to the Lord; like a great ram, the leader of a good flock, he was led by the most ferocious soldiers, in the cruelest of hands, to Rome for consumption by beasts.
CHAPTER III.
Taking up the blessed Ignatius, therefore, he arrived at Seleucia; from whence they were also to sail. And holy Ignatius, after much labor, looking towards the city of the Smyrneans, descended from the ship with much joy, hastening to see holy Polycarp, the bishop of the Smyrneans, his fellow-servant. Both, however, had been disciples of the apostle John. Seeing him brought to himself, the blessed Polycarp, and communicating with him spiritually, and rejoicing with him in his bonds, asked him to proceed to his purpose. But the whole Church more generally asked him through the holy bishop Polycarp, and through the holy priests and deacons. And all the churches of Asia hastened to him, so that they might be partakers of his spiritual blessing. But especially they exhorted the holy Polycarp to encourage him, so that, having been perfected by the beasts, and having become invisible to the world, he might be presented before the sight of Christ.
A But afterwards, when in the ninth year of his reign Trajan had returned from his victory over the Scythians and Dacians and various nations; and he thought that he might lose his empire unless he inclined the most pious worship of the Christians toward idolatry; he compelled all the worshipers of God either to sacrifice or certainly to die. Then, fearing for the Church of the Antiochians, the most valiant soldier of Christ, Ignatius, went of his own accord to Trajan, who was passing through Antioch at that time and hastening to Armenia and the Parthians. And when he stood before the face of King Trajan, Trajan said: "Who are you, demoniac, who hasten to transgress our commands, and persuade others to perish evilly?" Ignatius said: "No one calls a Theophorus 'demoniac'; for demons wander far from the servants of God. I know indeed that I am troublesome to them; on account of this you called me 'demoniac' wrongfully. For I confess that I have Christ as King; and I dissolve their counsels." Trajan said: "And who is 'Theophorus'?" Ignatius said: "He who has Christ in his breast." Trajan said: "And do we not seem to you to have gods in our breast, whom we have as helpers against our enemies?" Ignatius said: "You err, deeming the demons of the nations to be gods. For there is one God, who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all things that are in them: and one only-begotten Jesus Christ, His Son, whose friendship I have acquired." Trajan said: "Do you mean him who was crucified under Pontius Pilate?" Ignatius said: "I mean Him who crucified my sin, and its inventor; and who casts down every malice of the devil, and subjects it under the feet of those who carry Him in their heart." Trajan said: "Do you, therefore, carry Christ within yourself?" Ignatius said: "Yes. For it is written: 'I will dwell in them and walk among them.'" Trajan said: "I have judged that Ignatius, who says he contains the crucified one within himself, be led bound by soldiers to the great city Rome, as food for beasts for the entertainment of the people." Hearing this sentence, the holy martyr Ignatius exulted with joy, saying: "I give thanks to You, Lord, because You have perfectly honored me in Your love, and have made me worthy to be bound in iron chains with Your apostle Paul."
FROM CHAPTER V.
C And proceeding from there, he approached Troy. Brought to Neapolis, he crossed Macedonia on foot, and Epirus which is near Epidamnus by the sea; and embarking from thence on a ship, he sailed across the Adriatic sea. And when he ascended from there to the Tyrrhenian [(21)] region, it was shown to the holy bishop Pontiolus [(22)] that he himself would be passing through. And coming out to meet him, he was hastening to follow his footsteps like the apostle Paul. And he was not able to follow, the wind of the ship pressing upon the prow. And Ignatius, beatifying his brother in love in that place [(23)], sailed thus. Finally, having used favorable winds for one day and that night, they arrived at the city of Rome [(24)].
A Tiberianus, Governor of Palestine Prima, to the Emperor Trajan. A Report on the Christians (25).
To the most invincible Emperor, the most divine Caesar, Trajan.
I am exhausted from punishing and putting to death the Galileans (who come to us under the name of Christians) according to your mandates. Yet they do not cease to reveal themselves for execution. And although I have labored much, both with exhortations and threats, so that they would not dare to indicate to me that they are professors of that sect, they accept the persecution and do not grow quiet. Therefore, may your Majesty deign to proclaim to my imperial authority what is good to be done.
B Understanding that peace had been restored to his Antiochene church—a matter which occurred on the occasion of this report by Tiberianus, as we indicated in the note on the Epistle to the Philadelphians from John Malalas of Antioch and Suidas—the words of Suidas regarding Trajan are these: "He granted to the Christians a certain respite from punishment. For those who in those times bought their offices from the Romans, in order to gain the favor of the emperors who were then living, brought various punishments upon the Christians. Whence also Tiberianus, governing the first nation of the Palestinians, reported to him, saying that it no longer sufficed to kill the Christians, since they were delivering themselves to punishment of their own accord. Hence, Trajan forbade all those under him to punish them."
C Metaphrastes, however, with the name of Pliny omitted (perhaps because he might have found it corrupted in those Acts), set forth the whole matter in this way: "But the King Trajan, having learned thereafter of the matters concerning the God-bearer Ignatius, how he had gallantly completed the contest of martyrdom, and how, according to his own verdict, he became food for wild beasts; and hearing many things also regarding the Christians in the various regions, that they do nothing contrary to the laws, and do nothing unholy, but together at dawn they worship Christ as the Son of God, and practice all self-control regarding the partaking of both food and drink, and touch nothing of those things which the law forbids; having heard these things, he was moved to repentance for what had already been done, and is said to have issued a decree such as this: that the race of the Christians should indeed be sought out and made known everywhere, but when found, they should not be put to death, yet neither, on the other hand, should they hold office or handle the administrations of public affairs. Thus, not only the life of Ignatius, but also his death, became the source of many good things."
D The Emperor Trajan later, when he had learned about the divine Ignatius, and how bravely he had finished the contest of martyrdom, and that, as he himself had rendered the sentence, he had been devoured by the beasts; and had also heard many things of the Christians who were in the region, that they did nothing, namely, beyond the laws, nor performed any impious act, but rising at dawn worshipped Christ as the Son of God, and performed every abstinence in food and drink, and touched nothing of those things which the law prohibits; when he, I say, had heard these things, he was led to repentance for those things which had been done; and he is said to have proposed such a decree: that the race of the Christians should be inquired after, and be known to all; yet those found should not be killed; but neither should they hold office, nor undertake any administration of the Republic. Thus, not only the life of Ignatius, but...
also the death of many good men was the conciliation; because this, doubtless, rendered the persecution milder, *τὸν διωγμόν μετριώτερον*, as Zonaras has it in the history of Trajan.
Under the third consulate of Trajan, which falls in the hundredth year of the Christian era, we have already indicated in the chronological table of the first years of Trajan that C. Pliny entered upon his honorary consulship on the Kalends of September; and in the same argument, Lipsius confirms that that famous panegyric to Trajan was delivered by him in that same year and day. Baronius, however, wants this to have been done under the fourth consulate of Trajan: who also thinks that in the following year Pliny undertook the administration of the province, and sent these letters to Trajan; and implies that he can rightly be refuted for this error of Eusebius, in whom they were placed in the eleventh year of the same emperor, or rather the tenth, as Joseph Scaliger edited from the more emended codices of the Eusebian Chronicle. Let Baronius himself be consulted, at the year of Christ 104 (nos. 1 and 5), which D. Petavius correctly numbers as 102 of the common Christian era in his Chronicle; although he does not correctly refer this history to it. How weak are the foundations upon which the Baronian opinion, which he followed, was based, has already long since been shown by P. Halloix, *Notat. in Vit. Ignatii, cap. 14, quæst. 1.* USSER.
C. Pliny Secundus, Propretor of Bithynia, Report to the same concerning the same
AIt is my custom, Lord, to refer to you all matters about which I am in doubt. For who is better able to guide my hesitation or inform my ignorance? I have never been present at trials of Christians: therefore I do not know what is customary, or to what extent, it is usual to punish or to investigate. And I have hesitated not a little, whether any distinction is made for ages, or whether those of the most tender years differ in no respect from the stronger; whether pardon is granted for repentance; or if a man has been a Christian at all, whether it profits him nothing to have ceased; whether the name itself, even if free from crimes, is punished, or the crimes associated with the name?
Meanwhile, among those who were brought before me as Christians, I have followed this method. I interrogated them as to whether they were Christians; those who confessed I interrogated a second and a third time, threatening them with punishment: those who persisted I ordered to be led away. For I did not doubt (whatever it was that they confessed) that their stubbornness and inflexible obstinacy certainly deserved to be punished. B There were others of similar derangement, whom (because they were Roman citizens) I noted were to be sent to the City: soon in the very process, as is wont to happen, the crime spreading, more varieties occurred. An anonymous document was presented, containing the names of many, who denied that they were Christians, or had been, when they called upon the gods with me, and offered incense and wine to your image (which I had ordered to be brought with the images of the gods for this reason), and furthermore cursed Christ (none of which things are those who are truly Christians said to be coerced into doing): I thought they should be released. Others named by an informer said they were Christians, and soon denied it; that they had been, but had ceased, some three years ago, some even more years, none of them also before twenty; all of whom also worshipped your image and the statues of the gods, and cursed Christ.
They affirmed, however, that this had been the sum of their fault, or error, that they were accustomed to meet on a fixed day before dawn, and to say a song to Christ as if to a god, between themselves; and to bind themselves by an oath not to commit any crime, but rather not to commit theft, nor robbery, nor adultery, not to break their word, not to deny a deposit when called upon; which having finished, it was their custom to depart, and to return again to take food, a sharing which was common and harmless; which they had ceased to do, however, after my edict, in which, according to your mandates, I had forbidden secret societies (*hetærias*). C For which reason I believed it to be more necessary to investigate from two slave-women, who were called deaconesses, what was true, even by tortures. But I found nothing other than a perverse and excessive superstition, and therefore, having deferred the investigation, I have run to consult you.
For the matter has seemed to me worthy of consultation, especially because of the number of those in danger. For many of every age, of every order, and even of both sexes, are called into danger, and will be called. Nor has the contagion of this superstition pervaded cities only, but also villages and fields, which seems capable of being stopped and corrected. It is certainly sufficiently established that temples which were by now almost desolate have begun to be attended, and sacred rites, long interrupted, to be repeated, and victims to be sold everywhere; of which, until now, a very rare buyer was found. From which it is easy to infer what a throng of people can be corrected, if there be a place for repentance.
Trajan the Emperor, Rescript concerning the Christians
Trajan to Pliny, Greetings. You have followed, my Secundus, the course you ought to have in examining the causes of those who were reported to you as Christians. For in general, nothing that has, as it were, a fixed form can be established. D They are not to be sought out; if they are reported and convicted, they are to be punished: provided, however, that he who denies that he is a Christian, and makes this manifest in fact (that is, by supplicating our gods), although he may have been suspected in the past, may obtain pardon through repentance. But anonymous, baseless accusations ought to have no place in any crime. For both the worst example, and it is not of our age.
A Trajan’s reply is a sentence confused by necessity! He forbids them to be sought out as if they were innocent, yet commands them to be punished as if they were guilty. He spares and he rages: he pretends not to see and he punishes. Why do you circumvent yourself with your own censorship? If you condemn, why do you not also investigate? If you do not investigate, why do you not also absolve? Military stations are distributed throughout the provinces for the tracking down of robbers; every soldier acts against those guilty of treason and public enemies, and the investigation extends even to their associates and accomplices. Only the Christian is not allowed to be sought out, but is allowed to be brought forward, as if an inquiry could have any other purpose than that of accusation. You punish, therefore, one who is brought forward whom no one wanted to be sought out; and he, I suppose, does not merit punishment because he is guilty, but because he was found, although he should not have been sought.
S. POLYCARP, MARTYR, BISHOP OF THE SMYRNAEANS. PROLEGOMENA
(HEFELE, *Patrum apostolicorum Opera*, 3rd ed., Tübingen 1847, 8vo.)CONCERNING THE EPISTLE OF S. POLYCARP.
I. Concerning the fatherland, family, place, and time of the birth of S. Polycarp, we have no certain knowledge. However, what has come down to us concerning the life of this apostolic man, Gallandius has well collected (1). That he was instructed by the apostles and associated familiarly with many who had seen the Lord, Irenæus, his disciple, testifies in these words: "And Polycarp, who was also instructed by the apostles and associated with many who had seen Christ." Subsequently, that he was appointed bishop of the Smyrnaeans by the very familiars and ministers of the Lord, Eusebius records (3), following Irenæus in the place cited, writing thus: "Polycarp, an associate of the apostles, having been entrusted with the episcopate of the Church in Smyrna by those who had seen B and served the Lord." Yet that his Church’s episcopate was received by him from John the apostle, Tertullian reveals (4): "Let them, therefore," he says, "bring forth the origins of their churches; let them unroll the order of their bishops, running down from the beginning through successes in such sort that that first bishop shall have some one of the apostles or apostolic men—who, moreover, remained steadfast with the apostles—as his author and predecessor... just as the Church of the Smyrnaeans records that Polycarp was placed there by John." Nor does Jerome rightly write otherwise (5): "Polycarp, a disciple of John the apostle, and ordained Bishop of Smyrna by him."
A We doubt with good reason whether that distinguished testimony which is attributed in the Apocalypse of John (II, 8, 11) to the Angel of the Church of Smyrna ought to be referred to our Polycarp, since neither the year of Saint Polycarp’s birth nor the time when the Apocalypse was written has become perfectly known to us.
B Irenaeus (6) paints a graphic picture of his gifts of mind and body, his piety, his learning, and the gravity of his character, addressing Florinus in these words: "I saw you, when I was still a boy, in lower Asia with Polycarp, conducting yourself splendidly in the palace, and striving greatly to win his approval. For I remember the events of that time better than those which have happened recently; ... so much so that I can even name the place where the blessed Polycarp was wont to sit and discourse; also his manner of walking and his entry, the whole shape of his life and his bodily form; and, in short, the discourses which he held to the people, and the familiar intercourse which he had with John, as he used to relate, and with the others who had seen the Lord Himself; and how he used to recall their sayings; and whatever things he had heard from them concerning the Lord. Concerning his miracles also and his doctrine, just as he had received them from those who had seen the Word of life for themselves, Polycarp used to relate in the very same way, agreeing in all things with the Sacred Scripture." Thus far Irenaeus, who also elsewhere summarizes his thought to the same effect (7): "But even Polycarp... whom we also saw when we were still adolescents (for he lived a very long time, and in extreme old age, having suffered a glorious and illustrious martyrdom, he departed from this life), always taught what he had learned from the apostles, and what the Church even now hands down, and what alone is true."
After narrating these things, and with few words intervening, the holy Father recalls this fact also, which is worthy of mention: "For Polycarp himself," he says, "when Marcion once chanced to meet him and said, ‘Recognize us,’ he replied, ‘I recognize the firstborn of Satan.’" C These things took place at Rome. For while Antoninus was reigning and Anicetus was governing the Church, Saint Polycarp set out for Rome, that he might resolve the differing opinions concerning the celebration of Easter. But neither could persuade the other to depart from his own custom. Therefore, in peace, and with the bond of charity in no way broken, Polycarp parted from Saint Anicetus, after he had brought back not a few to the Church, having deserted the errors of Valentinus and Marcion.
The Acts of his martyrdom tell us of the death of Saint Polycarp. However, the year in which the excellent prelate departed from this life is a matter of dispute among the learned and the masters of chronology. Pearson holds that Polycarp suffered in the year 147, whom Dodwell, Cave, Lardner, and Gallandius follow (8). According to Baraterius and Stieren (9) the martyrdom of Polycarp ought to be referred to the year 161; according to Norisius and Tillemont to the year 166; according to Scaliger, Valesius, Gieseler, and Neander, to the year 167; finally, Baronius, Usserius, Nourrius, and others maintain that Polycarp was crowned with martyrdom in the year 169. If you listen to Petit, the passion of Polycarp belongs to the year 175; Basnagius rejects his death to the year 178 (10).
II. Nor did the excellent pastor instruct his flock only by word and example, but he further edified them with writings filled with sacred doctrine, and altogether worthy of an apostolic man. Concerning these, Irenaeus has these things to say in the letter just praised (11): "But it is also possible to know [this] from his letters, which he sent either to the neighboring Churches, strengthening them, or to some of the brethren, admonishing and exhorting them." Yet of the various Polycarpian epistles, only one has reached us, which is that to the Philippians; a most luminous one, indeed, in the judgment of Irenaeus himself (12), from which whoever takes thought for their own salvation will be able, if they wish, to know both the character of his faith and his preaching of the truth; so much so that it is no wonder if it was held in such high esteem and honor among the primitive Christians that it was accustomed to be read in their sacred assemblies, as we know to have been the practice even up to the age of Jerome (13).
III. Regarding the authenticity of our epistle, called into doubt by the Magdeburg Centuriators, Dallaeus, and others (14), the most learned Nicolaus le Nourry (15) has argued excellently; by recording his words, I think I do something pleasing for the readers: "There is no one," he says, "who does not easily notice in this epistle all the marks and characteristics of an apostolic writer. For everywhere the words, the style, the genius, and all other things openly betray that it was written by a man truly apostolic, indeed even by Polycarp himself." D Nor indeed does the epistle itself alone, but also most substantial witnesses, greater than any exception, very firmly assert the same thing. The procession of these is led by Irenaeus, Bishop of Lugdunum, and Polycarp's...
own disciple, who, in recognizing or designating the epistles of his master, could not be deceived. For indeed, regarding this epistle of Polycarp, he handed down this to memory (16): "There is also an epistle of Polycarp written to the Philippians, most sufficient, from which those who wish and care for their own salvation can learn both the character of his faith and the preaching of the truth..." Eusebius subscribed to the opinion of Irenaeus. And lest anyone be able to stir up any dispute as to which epistle of Polycarp is spoken of, he faithfully transcribed several passages from that same epistle, which are still found in it even now. He says, then, as follows (17): "And Polycarp also makes mention of these same letters (the epistles of St. Ignatius) in his epistle to the Philippians which is in circulation, saying in his own words, etc." (There follow the words of Polycarp from chapters 9 and 13). And in another book, Eusebius says (18): "Polycarp indeed, in the aforementioned writing to the Philippians, which is in circulation to this day, uses some testimonies from the first epistle of Peter (e.g., c. 1, 2, 5, 7, 8, 10)." Jerome concurs with Eusebius, and he too gave his own testimony to the same epistle (19): "Polycarp, a disciple of the Apostle John, and ordained by him Bishop of Smyrna; he was the prince of all Asia, etc. He wrote a very useful epistle to the Philippians, which is read to this day in the assembly of Asia." From these words of Jerome, we learn not only that this epistle is ascribed to Polycarp by him, but furthermore that, having been preserved with the greatest care in the churches, it was held there in the highest esteem.
These three most substantial witnesses we could join with countless others, were there any need: Photius, Maximus, Theodoret, and all the rest who subsequently committed to writing something concerning this epistle of Polycarp. But since no greater diligence and faith could be desired than that of those whom we have already cited, we gladly dispense with the useless labor of naming others.
IV. Now we must speak of the integrity. Dallæus, since he could not hope that he might reject the whole epistle, contends that its last part was certainly falsely attributed to Polycarp, with Moynius agreeing. But: a) Eusebius (Hist. eccl. III, 36) cites this later part of the epistle, and from it (c. 13), as from the preceding parts, transcribed certain words of Polycarp. b) Eusebius, as Pearson well teaches (23-24), could neither be deceived nor deceive. For the whole epistle was exposed to all; it was publicly read in the Asiatic churches at that time when Eusebius wrote; Jerome knew it, and whose version of it, had he not been occupied with other matters, he would have devoted himself to, and yet he never rejected the Eusebian text. Therefore, concerning that particle which Eusebius wrote, there can be no doubt, unless we also doubt the whole epistle at the same time without any reason.
That which Dallæus brings forward from the epistle itself against its integrity, you will easily perceive to be of no moment. a) The critic contends that because a most seemly conclusion to the epistle is found in chapter 12, the remainder was therefore added later. But St. Paul and Clement of Rome also used such conclusions before the end of the whole epistle; cf. Rom. XVI, 23; Eph. VI, 21; I Clem. ad Cor. chaps. 20, 38, 45, 50, 58.
It is certain, therefore, that this epistle had no other author than Polycarp. Therefore, one must marvel at Dallæus, who directs all the forces of his wit so that he might cast some doubt, or at least suspicion, in any way whatsoever, upon some part of this epistle, which he felt did not favor his false opinions. For he relies on no other foundation to prove this than the *Stichometry*, which is appended at the end of the *Chronography* of Nicephorus of Constantinople (20). That this fragment was not written by Nicephorus at all, and is falsely attributed to him by Dallæus, Nourrius and Pearson have taught by invincible moments of reasoning (21).
b) "The impostor," if you listen to Dallæus, "speaks in such a way that he signifies that Ignatius, at the time when these things were written, was still alive." He says in chapter 13: "Concerning Ignatius himself, and those who are with him, what you have learned more certainly, signify." But the author of the first part (c. 9) affirms most openly that Ignatius was already dead. This is a futile argument. For if those words in chapter 13, because of which the Greek (καὶ περὶ Ἰγνατίου καὶ περὶ τῶν μετ᾿ αὐτοῦ) is still extant, were accused of falsehood, no one would certainly contend that Ignatius is signified or hinted at as still being alive to them.
V. We are taught from the epistle itself that the epistle of St. Polycarp was written shortly after the martyrdom of St. Ignatius, in chapter 13. Cf. above, that which [was written] concerning the time of the death of St. Ignatius. For the names of Ignatius and Polycarp are placed here nakedly, and nothing is affirmed concerning the epistles or their supposititious nature. Rather, it is evident from the context that these two Fathers are separated only by the canon of Holy Scripture. A, B, C, D
A of Ignatius (in the preface to his Epistles). VI. This epistle is found incomplete in all Greek manuscripts. Where the manuscripts fail, the epistle of Barnabas is continuously appended, but with the beginning truncated. The entire epistle of Polycarp, however, was preserved for us by an ancient version, which was first published at Paris in 1498 by Jacques Lefèvre d’Étaples, having been discovered by himself. Petrus Halloix first brought the epistle to light in Greek and Latin at Douai in 1633, from a transcript by François Turrian, transmitted to him by the most learned man Jacques Sirmond, S.J. Fourteen years later, James Ussher obtained another exemplar, which he had transcribed with his own hand and shared with Isaac Vossius; he compared it with Halloix’s edition and published this Polycarpian epistle with an ancient interpreter at London in 1647; Cotelerius subsequently presented it adorned with a new interpretation. In the year 1709, the outstanding edition of Thomas Smith appeared, and Gallandius followed it. Finally, William Jacobson prepared a new edition in 1838 and 1840 (vol. II), using the Vatican, Parisian, and Medicean-Laurentian manuscripts. VII. The doctrine of Polycarp has been discussed by Lumper, Heynsius, Junius and van Gilse, Möhler, and others.
CONCERNING THE MARTYRDOM OF ST. POLYCARP
I. Among the most eminent monuments of ecclesiastical antiquity, the Epistle of the Church of Smyrna concerning the martyrdom of St. Polycarp is justly reckoned, so much so that Eusebius deemed it necessary to insert it almost in its entirety into his History. Furthermore, his illustrious interpreter Valesius went so far as to affirm that the martyrdom of Polycarp and his companions was the first to be consigned to writing, and that no acts of martyrs older than these exist; nor did he hesitate, consequently, to conclude that this epistle of the Smyrnaeans was placed first by Eusebius in the book he entitled *A Collection of Ancient Martyrdoms*. However, the most learned man is to be received with some qualification; for the genuine Acts of the martyrdom of St. Ignatius had not yet been discovered at the time he held this opinion. So says Gallandius. II. This remarkable epistle concerning the martyrdom of St. Polycarp may most rightly, as Smith teaches, be termed *ἐγκύκλιος* or encyclical, as is evident from the inscription; as it was transmitted to various Churches, both those nearby in Asia Minor and elsewhere in other provinces, *κατὰ πάντα τόπον* (in every place). Eusebius wrongly interprets this—referring only to those who were situated *κατὰ Πόντον* (along the Pontus)—for *πάσαις ταῖς κατὰ πάντα τόπον* (to all [the churches] in every place), whereas it ought to be propagated and extended to all the Churches where the profession of the Christian religion flourished, especially those scattered throughout the East, by the Philadelphians themselves, as far as was in their power, to be communicated to the brethren B further afield; for the same appears in the series of all [the Churches], and the particular Church to which it is directed, under a changed name. III. Valesius contends that this epistle was written by the Smyrnaeans not immediately after the martyrdom of Polycarp, but some time later, saying: "Since the Philomelienses had heard of Polycarp’s martyrdom only by rumor and hearsay, they sent a letter to the Church of Smyrna, asking that all things which had occurred during the passion of the blessed man might be written down in detail and sent to them." This, indeed, the Smyrnaeans most willingly performed, writing to them the epistle which we have in our hands. They indicate this by these words (c. 20): *ὑμεῖς μὲν οὖν ἠξιώσατε διὰ πλειόνων δηλωθῆναι ὑμῖν τὰ γενόμενα* (You, therefore, asked that the events be made known to you in greater detail). But that these acts were written in the first year after the death of St. Polycarp is evident from the fact that the first anniversary of this martyrdom had not yet been celebrated, as we see from chapter 18. IV. The epistle concerning the martyrdom of Polycarp, written in the name of the Church of Smyrna by Evarestus, was carried to the Philomelienses by a certain Marcus, or Martianus. Irenaeus had a copy of this epistle, which Gaius, his disciple, transcribed, and after him a certain Socrates the Corinthian, and another, Pionius by name. V. Concerning the best edition of the Epistle of the Smyrnaean Church, see Jacobson, whom we have followed. Refer to what we have noted below regarding the inscription of this Epistle.
Eusebius bore witness to this, for he inserted the greater part of it into his History, with these words (41): A “At that time, Polycarp was perfected by martyrdom amidst the persecutions that threw Asia into the greatest tumult. His end, which is still extant in writing, I consider it necessary that I should commit to the memory of this history. The writing is from the person of the Church which he himself led, making known to the parishes in Pontus the events concerning him, etc.” The words of our Epistle follow.
In the same place, after Eusebius has brought forth much from that epistle, he concludes with these words: “Such, then, was the end that the marvelous and apostolic Polycarp was counted worthy of, as the account of the brethren of the Church of the Smyrnaeans, in which we have revealed their B Epistle, has established.”
Irenaeus (42) also spoke words concerning the martyrdom of St. Polycarp: “For he remained for a long time; and being very elderly, having testified gloriously and most illustriously, he departed this life.”
Similarly, Jerome (43): “But later, in the reign of M. Antoninus and L. Aurelius Commodus, in the fourth persecution after Nero, at Smyrna, with the proconsul sitting in judgment, and the entire people crying out against him in the amphitheater, he was given to the fire.”
VI. No one, so far as I know, has called the entirety of the Epistle of the Smyrnaean Church into doubt, and even the most rigorous critics have granted it their praise (44). To those things which we have brought forth above (n. 1) from Valesius, we shall add what the most illustrious Scaliger declared in his Eusebian *Animadversions* (p. 121). These, he says, are those most ancient martyrdoms of the Church, by the reading of which the spirit of the pious is so deeply moved that one never returns from them satiated; that this is indeed the case, everyone can perceive according to their own capacity and the manner of their conscience. Certainly, I have never seen anything in ecclesiastical history from the reading of which I have departed more moved, so that I seem to no longer be myself.
In our own times, Möhler, in particular, has pleaded the cause of this epistle (45).
Heumann (46) and others have contended that some shreds, especially the story about the dove in ch. 16, were added to our Epistle by later hands; not entirely unjustly, as it seems.
For my part, I consider the final portion of chapter 22, which speaks of Pionius, to be spurious and composed by the one who forged those supposititious Acts of St. Polycarp which we mentioned above, and which D were falsely ascribed to Pionius, and which the genuine Epistle of the Smyrnaeans did not include. For through the words *kathōs dēlōsō en tō kathexēs* [as I shall reveal in what follows], the Pseudo-Pionius indicates that in the following (i.e., in the spurious acts that were added) he would declare what Polycarp had revealed to him through a vision.
VII. Petrus Halloixius was the first to edit the Epistle of the Church of Smyrna in Greek and Latin (though the Greek was not complete) in his *Vitis Patrum Orient.*, vol. I (47). Ussher published it complete in 1647 in London from a manuscript Greek *Menologion* of the Barocci collection; then Cotelerius did so in Paris. Ruinart later wove the same into his *Acta martyrum sinceris*, and Smith added it to his 1709 edition of the Epistles of Ignatius and Polycarp. Gallandius followed Smith. Jacobson published the newest and most elegant edition in 1838 and 1840 (edit. II) at Oxford, using three codices: the Baroccian, the Parisian, and the Caesar-Vindobonensis.
VIII. Regarding the doctrine of this epistle, see Lumper, *Hist. theol. crit.*, vol. II, pp. 453-459.
IX. Let us add, finally, what Thomas Smith, an eyewitness, reports regarding the amphitheater of Smyrna, where the glorious martyr St. Polycarp died, and regarding his tomb, in these words (48): “To the sides,” he says, “of the other gate of the citadel, which is toward the east, there are still to be seen two eagles, the insignias of the Romans, fairly large and indeed beautifully delineated. From here, as we descended, we entered the ample amphitheater toward the *notapeliotes* [southeast], where St. Polycarp was crowned with martyrdom, its stone steps having been carried off by the Turks to adorn their houses. On its sides are two caverns, in which lions used to be kept, opposite one another. The tomb of St. Polycarp, which is still preserved on the side of the mountain facing the south-southeast, is visited solemnly by the Greeks on his feast day, consecrated to his memory, according to the custom that prevails among them. It is situated in a small shrine, perhaps a chapel of a church, contiguous to a pathway through which one must pass. This monument, if it is damaged and defiled by atmospheric erosion, or by the Turks, or by Western Christians who carry off fragments of marble as if they were relics, acts to the praise of those who restore it; an earthenware pot is also placed there, into which almost everyone, out of that veneration in which they are held toward the *Megalomartyr* who remained unmoved in spirit to die for Christ, is brought to cast a few small coins, so that it may endure for all time.” Such are the words of Smith.