Polycarp, Bishop & Martyr

Today we remember the Polycarp, a Bishop of Smyrna (in present-day Turkey) who was put to death by the Roman Empire in 156 a.d. for his Christian faith. We are told in a contemporary account, The Martyrdom of Polycarp, that when the arrest party came for him, the 86-year old life-long Christian,

went down and conversed with them, the bystanders marveling at his age and his constancy, and wondering why there should be so much eagerness for the apprehension of an old man like him. At that, he immediately gave orders that a table should be spread for them to eat and drink at that hour, as much as they desired. And he persuaded them to grant him an hour so he might pray unmolested.

Polycarp refused to offer incense to Caesar, worshipping him as a God and so was sentenced to be burned alive. The flames did not consume him and one of the executioners stabbed him through the flames.

We know of Polycarp, who himself cherished memories of hearing Jesus' disciple John teach and preach, not just through his death but also through his letter to the Philippians, which says in part,

If then we entreat the Lord to forgive us, we ought also ourselves to forgive; for we are before the eyes of our Lord and God, and "we must all appear at the judgment-seat of Christ, and must every one give an account of himself." Let us then serve Him in fear, and with all reverence, even as He Himself has commanded us, and as the apostles who preached the Gospel unto us, and the prophets who proclaimed beforehand the coming of the Lord [have alike taught us].

The full text of Polycarp's Letter to the Philippians is online here.

There is a saying that the blood of the martyrs was the seed of the church. Their witness in death was such a powerful example of the real power behind the Christian claims that many took notice. It was through the peace in the face of death shown by martyrs like Polycarp that many person came to faith in Jesus Christ. In many parts of the world today, Christians continue to be persecuated for their faith. May the God who gave peace to Polycarp to face flame and sword continue to grant that same peace to those who must be faithful unto death.