Polycarp serves food to the soldiers who have come to arrest
him.

Introduction

The early church was hated by the society and government of the
Roman Empire for various reasons, such as the refusal of Christians
to sacrifice to the gods. The Empire went through many phases of
demanding that the Christians sacrifice — which meant denying their
faith — or be killed. The earliest attacks claimed the lives of
many of the apostles.

This text is the story, from around 160 AD, of the martyrdom of
Polycarp, the Bishop of the church in Smyrna, a city in Asia Minor
(modern Izmir in Turkey) devoted to Roman worship. The account is
in the form of a letter from eye-witnesses to other churches in the
area. It is the earliest chronicle of a martyrdom outside the New
Testament.

Polycarp was an old man, at least 86 (see part 10), and probably
the last surviving person to have known an apostle, having been a
disciple of St. John. This was one reason he was greatly revered as
a teacher and church leader. One interesting feature of the letter
is that the writer is very conscious of how Polycarp’s death
followed the pattern of Christ’s. As you read it, look for
parallels between this story and the Easter story in the
gospels.

The numbers below refer to segments in the
document.

1. Smyrna’s Introduction

We are writing to you, brothers, with an account of the martyrs,
especially the blessed Polycarp, whose death brought to the
persecution to a close. Almost all the events that led up to it
reveal it to be another martyrdom in the divine pattern that we see
in the Gospel. For he waited for his betrayal, just like the Lord
did, so that we might follow him, in looking out for the needs of
others as well as ourselves. True love desires not only one’s own
salvation, but the salvation of all our brothers.

2. Earlier Martyrs

All the martyrdoms which God allowed to happen (remember that
the devout will ascribe all things to his sovereignty) were blessed
and noble. Who could not admire their honor, their patience, their
love for the Lord? They were whipped to shreds till their veins and
arteries were exposed, and still endured patiently, while even
those that stood by cried for them. They had such courage that none
of them let out a sigh or a groan, proving when they suffered such
torments they were absent from their bodies – or rather that the
Lord then stood by them and talked with them. By the grace of
Christ they despised all the cruelties of this world, redeeming
themselves from eternal punishment by the suffering of a single
hour. The fire of their savage executioners appeared cool to them,
because they fixed their eyes on their escape from the eternal
unquenchable fire and the good things promised to those who endure
– things ‘which ear has not heard, nor eye seen, nor the human
heart imagined’ but were revealed to them by the Lord. They were no
longer men, but had already become angels. In the same way, those
who were condemned to the wild beasts endured dreadful torture.
Some were stretched out on beds of spikes. Others were subjected to
all kinds of torments, all in the Devil’s attempt to make them deny
Christ.

3. The Death of Germanicus

In all that the Devil attempted he failed, thanks be to God. The
heroic Germanicus encouraged the weak by his own endurance, and
fought bravely with the wild animals: when the Proconsul tried to
persuade him to cooperate for the sake of his own youth, he drew
the wild beast towards himself and provoked it, in order to escape
more quickly from this wicked world. Seeing all this, the amazed
crowd of spectators cried out, “Down with the atheists! [i.e. those
who do not believe in the Roman gods] Get Polycarp!”

4. Why we don’t encourage voluntary martyrdom

By the way, when Quintus the Phrygian handed himself over for
martyrdom with some others, the Proconsul persuaded them to take
the oath and sacrifice. This is why we do not approve of voluntary
martyrdom, something the Gospel does not teach us to do.

5. Polycarp’s Vision

When he heard about this, the redoubtable Polycarp was not in
the least upset, and was happy to stay in the city, but eventually
he was persuaded to leave. He went to friends in the nearby
country, where as usual he spent the whole time, day and night, in
prayer for all people and for the churches throughout the world.
Three days before he was arrested, while he was praying, he had a
vision of the pillow under his head in flames. He said
prophetically to those who were with him, ” I will be burnt
alive.”

6. The Betrayal

Those who were looking for him were coming near, so he left for
another house. They immediately followed him, and when they could
not find him, they seized two young men from his own household and
tortured them into confession. The sheriff, called Herod, was
impatient to bring Polycarp to the stadium, so that he might
fulfill his special role, to share the sufferings of Christ, while
those who betrayed him would be punished like Judas.

7. The Arrest

The police and horsemen came with the young man at suppertime on
the Friday with their usual weapons, as if coming out against a
robber. That evening, they found him lying down in the upper room
of a cottage. He could have escaped but he refused saying, “God’s
will be done.” When he heard that they had come, he went down and
spoke with them. They were amazed at his age and steadfastness, and
some of them said. “Why did we go to so much trouble to capture a
man like this?” Immediately he called for food and drink for them,
and asked for an hour to pray uninterrupted. They agreed, and he
stood and prayed, so full of the grace of God, that he could not
stop for two hours. The men were astounded and many of them
regretted coming to arrest such a godly and venerable an old
man.

8. Entering the City

When he finished praying… they put him on a donkey, and took him
into the city….

9. Polycarp Refuses to Deny Jesus

As Polycarp was being taken into the arena, a voice came to him
from heaven: “Be strong, Polycarp and play the man!” No one saw who
had spoken, but our brothers who were there heard the voice. When
the crowd heard that Polycarp had been captured, there was an
uproar. The Proconsul asked him whether he was Polycarp. On hearing
that he was, he tried to persuade him to apostatize, saying, “Have
respect for your old age, swear by the fortune of Caesar. Repent,
and say, ‘Down with the Atheists!’” Polycarp looked grimly at the
wicked heathen multitude in the stadium, and gesturing towards
them, he said, “Down with the Atheists!” “Swear,” urged the
Proconsul, “reproach Christ, and I will set you free.” “86 years
have I have served him,” Polycarp declared, “and he has done me no
wrong. How can I blaspheme my King and my Savior?”

11. More Attempts to Make Him Submit

“I have wild animals here,” the Proconsul said. “I will throw
you to them if you do not repent.” “Call them,” Polycarp replied.
“It is unthinkable for me to repent from what is good to turn to
what is evil. I will be glad though to be changed from evil to
righteousness.” “If you despise the animals, I will have you
burned.” “You threaten me with fire which burns for an hour, and is
then extinguished, but you know nothing of the fire of the coming
judgment and eternal punishment, reserved for the ungodly. Why are
you waiting? Bring on whatever you want.”

13. The Fire is Prepared

It was all done in the time it takes to tell. The crowd
collected wood and bundles of sticks from the shops and public
baths. The Jews , as usual, were keen to help. When the pile was
ready, Polycarp took off his outer clothes, undid his belt, and
tried to take off his sandals – something he was not used to, as
the faithful always raced to do it for him, each wanting to be the
one to touch his skin – this is how good his life was. But when
they went to fix him with nails, he said, “Leave me as I am, for he
that gives me strength to endure the fire, will enable me not to
struggle, without the help of your nails.”

14. Polycarp Prays

So they simply bound him with his hands behind him like a
distinguished ram chosen from a great flock for sacrifice. Ready to
be an acceptable burnt-offering to God, he looked up to heaven, and
said, “O Lord God Almighty, the Father of your beloved and blessed
Son Jesus Christ, by whom we have received the knowledge of you,
the God of angels, powers and every creature, and of all the
righteous who live before you, I give you thanks that you count me
worthy to be numbered among your martyrs, sharing the cup of Christ
and the resurrection to eternal life, both of soul and body,
through the immortality of the Holy Spirit. May I be received this
day as an acceptable sacrifice, as you, the true God, have
predestined, revealed to me, and now fulfilled. I praise you for
all these things, I bless you and glorify you, along with the
everlasting Jesus Christ, your beloved Son. To you, with him,
through the Holy Ghost, be glory both now and forever. Amen.”

15. A Miracle

Then the fire was lit, and the flame blazed furiously. We who
were privileged to witness it saw a great miracle, and this is why
we have been preserved, to tell the story. The fire shaped itself
into the form of an arch, like the sail of a ship when filled with
the wind, and formed a circle around the body of the martyr. Inside
it, he looked not like flesh that is burnt, but like bread that is
baked, or gold and silver glowing in a furnace. And we smelt a
sweet scent, like frankincense or some such precious spices.

16. The Death of Polycarp

Eventually, when those wicked men saw that his body could not be
consumed by the fire, they commanded an executioner to pierce him
with a dagger. When he did this [a dove flew out and] [*this may
well be a later interpolation or transcription error] such a great
quantity of blood flowed that the fire was extinguished. The crowd
were amazed at the difference between the unbelievers and the elect
– of whom the great Polycarp was surely one, having in our own
times been an apostolic and prophetic teacher, and bishop of the
Catholic Church in Smyrna. For every word he spoke either has been
or shall be accomplished.

17. The Body

When the Enemy saw the wonder of his martyrdom, his blameless
life and now his crowning with immortality, he did his utmost to
stop us keeping any memorial of him or taking possession of his
holy body. He inspired Nicetes, the father of Herod, along with the
Jews to ask the governor not to hand over his body for burial.
“They might turn from worshipping the crucified one,” he said,
“only to start worshipping this one.” They did not realize that it
is impossible for us to abandon Christ who suffered for the
salvation of the world, or to worship any other….

18. Celebrations

The centurion then, seeing the disturbance caused by the Jews,
took the body and publicly burnt it. Later, we collected up his
bones, more precious than jewels and better purified than gold, and
put them in an appropriate place where, the Lord willing, we shall
celebrate the birthday of his martyrdom each year with joy and
rejoicing, both to remember those who have run their race and to
prepare those yet to walk in their steps.

19. Polycarp’s Reward

This is the story of the blessed Polycarp, the twelfth martyr in
Smyrna, though he has a unique place memory of all people, being
remembered even by all the heathen. He was not merely an
illustrious teacher, but also a pre-eminent martyr, whose death all
desire to imitate, being altogether consistent with the Gospel of
Christ. Having overcome the unjust governor with patience and
acquired the crown of immortality, he now, with the apostles and
all the righteous, glorifies God the Father with joy, and blesses
our Lord Jesus Christ, the Savior of our souls, the Ruler of our
bodies, and the Shepherd of the Catholic Church throughout the
world.

Bible verses:

Daniel 3:8-30 Matthew 10:16-39 Acts 7:54-8:4 Romans 8:18-25
Hebrews 12:1-3

Study Questions

1. “Almost all the events that led up to it reveal it to be
   another martyrdom in the divine pattern that we see in the Gospel.”
   What are the parallels this story and the gospel accounts of the
   Passion? How much do you think this can be put down to the
   creativity of the writer?
2. “By the grace of Christ they despised all the cruelties of this
   world, redeeming themselves from eternal punishment by the
   suffering of a single hour.” The martyrologies of the Early Church
   often stress how the martyr saves his or her soul by this
   suffering. Is it true that a special reward is promised to those
   who make this sacrifice? Is theirs a surer salvation?
3. The writer disapproves of Quintus handing himself over for
   voluntary martyrdom. Polycarp actively runs from the soldiers –
   though only after persuasion (5). Many in the early church
   disapproved of such self-preservation. What do you think the
   Christian attitude should be to death in such circumstances?
4. “Have respect for your old age, swear by the fortune of Caesar.
   Repent, and say, ‘Down with the Atheists!’” By “Atheists,” the
   Proconsul means those who don’t believe in gods. Imagine being one
   of the pagans who witnessed Polycarp’s suffering – all because he
   wouldn’t give a sacrifice. What kind impression do you think it
   would make on you?
5. There are a number of miraculous elements in the account. Do
   you think it is a case of the story growing in the telling, or do
   you think the writer is reliable in such details? What affects your
   opinion?
6. “We collected up his bones, more precious than jewels and
   better purified than gold, and put them in an appropriate place
   where, the Lord willing, we shall celebrate the birthday of his
   martyrdom each year with joy and rejoicing.” This is the first
   record of such practices, and the annual “graveside birthday”
   services soon developed into saints’ days, the veneration of relics
   and prayers to the saints. Do you think this was a beneficial
   development for the church?
7. What can Christians learn today from the example of
   Polycarp?

https://christianhistoryinstitute.org/study/module/polycarp

Read more https://swordpress.com.ng/2020/11/14/polycarps-martyrdom-how-can-i-blaspheme-my-king-and-my-savior-www-netchurch-com-ng/

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