Polycarp

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
For other uses, see Polycarp (disambiguation).
Lutheran Church,
Anglican Communion
Feast23 February (formerly 26 January)
AttributesWearing the pallium, holding a book representing his Epistle to the Philippians
PatronageEarache Sufferers
InfluencesClement of Rome,[1] John the Apostle
InfluencedIrenaeus
Major worksEpistle of Polycarp to the Philippians

Polycarp (

Latin: Polycarpus; AD 69 – 155) was a Christian bishop of Smyrna.[2] According to the Martyrdom of Polycarp, he died a martyr, bound and burned at the stake, then stabbed when the fire failed to consume his body.[3] Polycarp is regarded as a saint and Church Father in the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox Church, Oriental Orthodox Churches, Lutheranism, and Anglicanism
.

Both Irenaeus[4] and Tertullian[5] say that Polycarp had been a disciple of John the Apostle, one of Jesus's disciples. In On Illustrious Men, Jerome writes that Polycarp was a disciple of John the Apostle and that John had ordained him as a bishop of Smyrna.[6] Polycarp is regarded as one of three chief Apostolic Fathers, along with Clement of Rome and Ignatius of Antioch.

Surviving writings and early accounts

The sole surviving work attributed to him is the Epistle of Polycarp to the Philippians, a mosaic of references to the Greek Scriptures, which, along with an account of Martyrdom of Polycarp, forms part of the collection of writings called Apostolic Fathers. After the Acts of the Apostles, which describes the death of Stephen, the Martyrdom is considered one of the earliest genuine accounts of a Christian martyrdom.[2] Charles E. Hill argues extensively that the teachings Irenaeus ascribes to a certain apostolic "presbyter" throughout his writings represent lost teachings of Polycarp, his teacher.[7]

Some scholars attribute the

2 Timothy, and the Epistle to Titus — to Polycarp. Since the text of those books includes attribution to Paul, this theory regarding Polycarp's authorship place the books in the category of pseudepigrapha. Hans von Campenhausen is one scholar who holds the view that Polycarp is the real author.[8]

Life

The chief sources of information concerning the life of Polycarp are The Martyrdom of Polycarp,

epistles of Ignatius, and Polycarp's own letter to the Philippians. In 1999, the Harris Fragments, a collection of 3rd- to 6th-century Coptic texts that mention Polycarp, were published.[9]

Link to the Apostles and Jesus

According to Irenaeus, Polycarp was a companion of Papias, another "hearer of John", and a correspondent of Ignatius of Antioch. Ignatius addressed a letter to him and mentions him in his letters to the Ephesians and to the Magnesians.[10] Polycarp's epistle to the Philippians gives us some insights to the early usage of the New Testament from the quotes used within his letter.[11] Irenaeus regarded the memory of Polycarp as a link to the apostolic past. In his letter to Florinus, a fellow student of Polycarp who had become a Roman presbyter and later lapsed into heresy, Irenaeus relates how and when he became a Christian:[12]

I could tell you the place where the blessed Polycarp sat to preach the Word of God. It is yet present to my mind with what gravity he everywhere came in and went out; what was the sanctity of his deportment, the majesty of his countenance; and what were his holy exhortations to the people. I seem to hear him now relate how he conversed with John and many others who had seen Jesus Christ, the words he had heard from their mouths.[13]

In particular, he heard the account of Polycarp's discussion with John and with others who had seen Jesus. Irenaeus reports that Polycarp was converted to Christianity by apostles, was consecrated a presbyter, and communicated with many who had seen Jesus. He writes that he had had the good fortune, when young, to know Polycarp, who was then far advanced in years.[14]

Visit to Anicetus

According to Irenaeus, during the time his fellow Syrian

spring equinox. Anicetus allowed Polycarp to celebrate the Eucharist in his own church, which was regarded by the Romans as a great honor.[15]

Martyrdom

Polycarp miraculously extinguishing the fire burning the city of Smyrna

In the Martyrdom, Polycarp is recorded as saying on the day of his death: "Eighty and six years I have served Him, and He has done me no wrong." This could indicate either that he was then eighty-six years old

burned at the stake and pierced with a spear for refusing to burn incense to the Roman emperor.[17] On his farewell, he said: "I bless you, Father, for judging me worthy of this hour, so that in the company of the martyrs I may share the cup of Christ."[13]

The date of Polycarp's death is in dispute.

Eusebius dates it to the reign of Marcus Aurelius, c. 166–167. However, a post-Eusebian addition to the Martyrdom of Polycarp, dates his death to Saturday, 23 February, in the proconsulship of Lucius Statius Quadratus
, c. 155 or 156. These earlier dates better fit the tradition of his association with Ignatius and John the Evangelist.

The Martyrdom of Polycarp states that Polycarp was taken on the Sabbath and killed on "the

Quartodeciman) Christian Passover, respectively.[21]

Importance

Engraving by Michael Burghers, ca 1685

Polycarp occupies an important place in the history of the early Christian Church,

Sabbatarians
.

According to Eusebius, Polycrates of Ephesus cited the example of Polycarp in defense of local practices during the quartodeciman controversy.[24]

Irenaeus, who as a young man had heard Polycarp preach, described him as

Marcion, and the rest of the heretics.” Polycarp lived in an age after the deaths of the apostles, when a variety of interpretations of the sayings of Jesus were being preached. His role was to authenticate orthodox teachings through his connection with the apostle John: "a high value was attached to the witness Polycarp could give as to the genuine tradition of old apostolic doctrine"[3]
"his testimony condemning as offensive novelties the figments of the heretical teachers". Irenaeus states (iii. 3) that on Polycarp's visit to Rome, his testimony converted many disciples of Marcion and Valentinus.

Veneration and Commemoration

The Martyrdom of Polycarp is one of the earliest, if not the earliest, accounts of the veneration of the relics of a saint and the annual commmemoration of a saint on the date of his or her death:

And so we afterwards took up his bones which are more valuable than precious stones and finer than refined gold, and laid them in a suitable place; where the Lord will permit us to gather ourselves together, as we are able, in gladness and joy, and to celebrate the birth-day of his martyrdom for the commemoration of those that have already fought in the contest, and for the training and preparation of those that shall do so hereafter.[26]

Relics of Polycarp are under the main altar of the church of Sant'Ambrogio della Massima.[27][28] The right arm of St. Polycarp had been kept at the Monastery of the Dormition of the Theotokos-Saint Polycarp, in Ampelakiotissa near Nafpaktos, Greece, for over 500 years. It was stolen on 14 March 2013 and never recovered; however, a fragment, taken from the arm on a previous occasion, was discovered and returned to the monastery on 14 July 2019.[29]

In the

Roman Catholic liturgical calendar, the feast day has the liturgical rank of obligatory memorial, but if the memorial is within the season of Lent that year, it is reduced in rank to a commemoration. In the Coptic Orthodox Church, his feast day is on 29 Amshir (8 March in the Gregorian calendar). Polycarp is remembered in the Church of England with a Lesser Festival on 23 February.[30]

Theology

Saint Polycarp

Polycarp's soteriology is not clear; he does cite Ephesians 2:8 to say salvation is by grace rather than works, though later exhorts his readers to do good works. It is not clear from the text how he views works in relation to salvation as his comments are too little to make a clear conclusion. He could have believed that works are mere results of saving grace or that they are necessary to keep salvation and that they have meritorious value, thus we cannot know if he was a monergist or a synergist.[31]

Polycarp in his letter calls Jesus the "son of God" and the "eternal high priest" and that "to him all heavenly and earthly things were subjected, whom every breath worships, who comes as a judge of the living and the dead". He also highlighted the sinlessness of Jesus,[32] defended the doctrine of the Incarnation and the death of Christ in the cross, and clearly opposed docetism.[32] Polycarp outright denied the teachings of Marcion, claiming he was the firstborn of Satan.[33] Polycarp's statements in the Martyrdom of Polycarp also appear to have trinitarian theology.[34]

What we know of Polycarp's eschatology is largely confined to the affirmation of the resurrection of the dead and Christ's second coming as a judge.[32] Polycarp was perhaps a premillenialist; Polycarp’s student Irenaeus was a premillenialist along with his associate Papias, which suggests that Polycarp also held similar views.[35][36]

Polycarp refers to multiple books of the New Testament as scripture, including: Matthew, Acts, 1 John, Philippians, Jude, 1 Peter, 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, Romans and others.[37] Polycarp also quotes the deuterocanonical book of Tobit; however, from his manner of quotation it is not possible to know how much authority he afforded it.[38]

Polycarp's letter to the Philippians only mentions presbyters and deacons, which indicates the church at Philippi was led by a plurality of "elder-bishops", which would imply a different ecclesiastical polity than what is found in

early church. Steinhauser hypothesized that there was possibly a temporary vacancy in the Philippian church.[39]

Polycarp was a Quartodeciman. According to Eusebius, Polycarp claimed that he celebrated Easter on the 14th of Nisan with John the Apostle.[40][41] Polycarp appears to make heresy a more serious issue than immorality. Polycarp calls immoral people to repent but called the false teachers "firstborn of Satan".[42] Polycarp stated, "I have served him eighty-six years and in no way has he dealt unjustly with me". Proponents of infant baptism have argued that this quote shows Polycarp being baptized as an infant, the argument being that if Polycarp was a servant of Christ for 86 years, he would have been a servant of Christ from infancy, suggesting infant baptism. However, Credobaptists such as Schoedel William have offered a different interpretation of the words of Polycarp, stating that the quote is ambiguous as regards to baptism, and that Polycarp can be understood as meaning by paraphrasing: "I have always served Jesus and I am not going to cease even at the age of 86."[43]

See also

References

  1. ^ Richardson, Cyril C. (1953). Early Christian Fathers. Pag 125-137.
  2. ^ a b Polycarp at the Encyclopædia Britannica
  3. ^ a b c Henry Wace, Dictionary of Christian Biography and Literature to the End of the Sixth Century A.D., with an Account of the Principal Sects and Heresies, s.v. "Polycarpus, bishop of Smyrna".
  4. Adversus Haereses III.3
  5. ^ Tertullian, De praescriptione hereticorum 32.2
  6. ^ "Kirby, Peter. "St. Polycarp of Smyrna." Early Christian Writings. 2020. 10 January 2020".
  7. OCLC 64571945
    .
  8. ^ Grant, Robert M. (1963). "Chapter 14: The Non-Pauline Epistles". A Historical Introduction to the New Testament. Harper and Row.
  9. ^
    ISBN 978-3-16-147419-4
    .
  10. ^ Irenaeus, V.xxxiii.
  11. ^ That Ancient Faith, How Polycarp (And Others) Show The Early Use Of The New Testament
  12. ^ Bacchus, Francis Joseph (1911). "St. Polycarp" . In Herbermann, Charles (ed.). Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 12. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
  13. ^
    ISBN 971-91595-4-5
    .
  14. ^ Liguori, Alphonsus. "St. Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna", Victories of the Martyrs, (Eugene Grimm, ed.), New York, Benziger Brothers, 1888, p. 66Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  15. ^ a b Andrews, Herbert Tom (1911). "Polycarp" . In Chisholm, Hugh (ed.). Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 22 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 20–22.
  16. ^ Staniforth, Maxwell, trans. Early Christian Writings London: Penguin Books (1987): 115.
  17. ^ "Polycarp - Martyrdom". Polycarp.net.
  18. ^ William Cave, Primitive Christianity: or the Religion of the Ancient Christians in the First Ages of the Gospel. 1840, revised edition by H. Cary. Oxford, London, p. 84–85).
  19. ^ J. B. Lightfoot, Apostolic Fathers. Part II. S. Ignatius. S. Polycarp. Vol. 1, p. 610-611.
  20. ^ J. B. Lightfoot, Apostolic Fathers. Part II. S. Ignatius. S. Polycarp. Vol. 1, p. 713.
  21. ^ August Strobel, Ursprung und Geschichte der frühchristlichen Osterkalenders, Berlin: Akademie-Verlag, 1977, p. 247-248
  22. ^ MartPol 16:2 and Smyr 8:2
  23. ^ Schaff, Philip (ed.), Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, 2, vol. 3
  24. ^ "Eusebius, Church History, Book V, Chapter 24".
  25. Adversus Haereses III.3.4
  26. ^ "Medieval Sourcebook: The Martyrdom of Polycarp trans. J.B. Lightfoot". Fordham University. Retrieved 23 February 2024.
  27. ^ "Polycarp, bishop and martyr - February 23rd". Saint In Rome & Beyond. Retrieved 23 February 2024.
  28. ISBN 3629008305
    .
  29. ^ Sanidopoulos, John. "A Relic of Saint Polycarp Returns to Nafpaktos (Update on the 2013 Theft)". Orthodox Christianity Then And Now. Retrieved 23 February 2024.
  30. ^ "The Calendar". The Church of England. Retrieved 2021-03-27.
  31. ISBN 978-1-62189-771-2
    .
  32. ^
    ISBN 978-0-19-922839-3.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link
    )
  33. ISBN 978-3-16-148699-9
    .
  34. ISBN 978-0-19-955781-3.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link
    )
  35. ^ "A Brief History of Early Premillennialism". {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  36. ISBN 978-1-5326-3769-8
    .
  37. ^ Wilson, Luke J. (2021-11-21). "How Polycarp (And Others) Show The Early Use Of The New Testament". That Ancient Faith. Retrieved 2022-05-08.
  38. ISBN 978-90-04-31327-9
    .
  39. ISBN 978-0-19-922839-3.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link
    )
  40. ^ "CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: Easter Controversy". www.newadvent.org. Retrieved 2022-05-06.
  41. ^ "The Passover-Easter-Quartodeciman Controversy". Grace Communion International. Retrieved 2022-05-06.
  42. ISBN 978-1-78359-367-5
    .
  43. ISBN 978-1-7252-8086-1
    .

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