St. Polycarp

Summary

Podcast Summary: Catholic Saints – Episode on St. Polycarp

Host: Mary McGeehan
Guest: Dr. Ben Akers, Chief Content Officer at the Augustine Institute
Release Date: February 23, 2025

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Introduction

In the latest episode of Catholic Saints produced by the Augustine Institute, host Mary McGeehan is joined by Dr. Ben Akers to explore the life and legacy of Saint Polycarp, a pivotal figure in the early Catholic Church. The episode delves into Polycarp’s role as an Apostolic Father, his theological contributions, his steadfast faith amidst persecution, and his lasting impact on Christian doctrine and martyrdom.

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Saint Polycarp: Life and Significance

Mary McGeehan introduces the episode at [00:02], highlighting the episode's focus on St. Polycarp. Dr. Ben Akers emphasizes Polycarp’s importance as one of the great heroes of the early Church, bridging the Apostolic age and the second century. He notes Polycarp's lifespan from approximately 70 A.D. to his martyrdom in 155-156 A.D., with his feast day celebrated on February 23rd, the day of his death.

Dr. Ben Akers [00:39]: "He is an incredible gift that we have to the church. So he's a bridge between the apostles, the Apostolic age, and then kind of the second century."

Polycarp as an Apostolic Father

Dr. Akers confirms that Polycarp is rightly termed an Apostolic Father, men who had direct connections with the apostles. Polycarp was a disciple of St. John the Apostle, the beloved disciple who “laid his head on the heart of Christ” [01:38]. This direct mentorship placed Polycarp only two degrees away from Jesus, providing him with unique insights into Christ’s teachings.

Mary McGeehan [01:50]: "I just think that's mind blowing… to be discipled by the man who's reclined his head on Jesus chest."

Challenges and Heresies during Polycarp's Time

As bishop of Smyrna in Asia Minor (modern-day Turkey), Polycarp faced significant challenges, primarily combating Gnostic heresies. These heresies involved secret knowledge and distorted teachings that threatened orthodox Christian doctrine. Figures like Marcion and Valentinus represented these challenges, which Polycarp countered by adhering strictly to the teachings he received from St. John the Apostle.

Dr. Ben Akers [03:56]: "He would just go over and over again... it's a backhold from John and the Apostles."

Polycarp's Letters and Writings

Polycarp’s correspondence played a crucial role in preserving early Christian teachings. He received letters from contemporaries such as St. Ignatius of Antioch and also wrote to other communities, notably the Philippians. These letters reflect his humility and dedication to guiding Christians in living virtuously.

Mary McGeehan [13:14]: "Just that level of humility that he started off his letter with. Stood out to me."

Dr. Akers points out that letters were the primary mode of communication and doctrinal preservation in that era, similar to the Pauline Epistles, making these documents invaluable for understanding early Church theology.

Dr. Ben Akers [15:19]: "They copied them as quickly as they could... these are foundations of the faith that you need to hold to."

Martyrdom of Polycarp: Significance and Details

One of the episode’s highlights is the detailed account of Polycarp’s martyrdom, the earliest martyrdom record outside of St. Stephen’s account in the Acts of the Apostles. Polycarp’s trial and execution are depicted with profound parallels to Christ’s Passion, emphasizing his Christ-like demeanor and unwavering faith.

Dr. Ben Akers [16:46]: "His martyrdom, if you notice that it looks a lot like Christ… patterned on Christ's martyrdom."

Polycarp’s steadfastness, even at 86 years old, and his refusal to renounce his faith despite severe persecution, illustrate his deep commitment to Christ. His famous declaration during trial, “86 years have I served him and he has done me no wrong. How then can I blaspheme my king and my savior?” [25:04], underscores his unwavering loyalty.

Mary McGeehan [25:05]: "That is beautiful."

Biblical Connections and Symbolism

The episode draws connections between Polycarp’s martyrdom and biblical narratives, particularly the Book of Revelation. Dr. Akers suggests that the message to the Church of Smyrna in Revelation may be linked to Polycarp, highlighting the spiritual continuity between the apostolic teachings and early Church experiences.

Dr. Ben Akers [11:26]: "This is probably Polycarp's message that he's receiving from John."

Additionally, Polycarp’s martyrdom includes Eucharistic symbolism, portraying his sacrifice as a representation of the Eucharist, aligning his suffering with Christ’s sacrificial love.

Lessons from Polycarp's Life

Mary and Dr. Akers discuss the timeless lessons from Polycarp’s life, emphasizing faithfulness to God, humility, and the importance of upholding Church doctrine. They reflect on how Polycarp’s example of living out one’s faith with courage and integrity remains relevant for contemporary Christians.

Mary McGeehan [25:49]: "What can we learn from these men and women that we can apply to our lives today as well?"

Dr. Ben Akers [26:57]: "Be faithful to the words of Christ. If you’re faithful to him, he’ll be faithful to you."

Conclusion

The episode concludes by encouraging listeners to emulate Polycarp’s dedication and to share his story as a testament to enduring faith. Mary McGeehan underscores the profound impact of Polycarp's martyrdom on the Church’s perseverance through persecution and doctrinal challenges.

Mary McGeehan [27:22]: "We were so grateful. Well, Saint Polycarp, we ask for your intercession. Saint Polycarp, pray for us."

Listeners are invited to engage further by accessing video interviews on formed.org, the Augustine Institute’s online Catholic streaming service.

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Notable Quotes

• Dr. Ben Akers [00:39]: "He is an incredible gift that we have to the church. So he's a bridge between the apostles, the Apostolic age, and then kind of the second century."

• Mary McGeehan [13:14]: "Just that level of humility that he started off his letter with. Stood out to me."

• Dr. Ben Akers [16:46]: "His martyrdom… patterned on Christ's martyrdom."

• Dr. Ben Akers [25:04]: "86 years have I served him and he has done me no wrong. How then can I blaspheme my king and my savior?"

• Mary McGeehan [25:05]: "That is beautiful."

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Key Takeaways

• Saint Polycarp serves as a vital link between the apostles and the second-century Church, embodying the transition and continuity of early Christian teachings.

• Apostolic Fathers like Polycarp played a crucial role in combating heresies and preserving orthodox doctrine through their writings and letters.

• Martyrdom in early Christianity, as exemplified by Polycarp, is portrayed with deep Christological parallels, emphasizing faith, courage, and the ultimate sacrifice for the faith.

• Letters were the primary means of doctrinal preservation and communication among early Christians, showcasing the importance of written teachings in sustaining the Church.

• Modern Christians can draw inspiration from Polycarp’s unwavering faith, humility, and dedication to living out Christ’s teachings in the face of adversity.

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For more insights into the lives of the Saints and their enduring legacy, subscribe to the Augustine Institute’s Catholic Saints podcast and explore additional resources at formed.org and missioncircle.org.

Transcript

[Mary McGeehan]

You're listening to a podcast on Catholic Saints. This podcast is produced by the Augustine Institute, an apostolate helping Catholics understand, live, and share their faith. Hi. Welcome to Catholic Saints. My name is Mary McGeehan, and today I'm joined with Dr. Ben Akers. I work here at the Augustin Institute. Dr. Akers here is the Chief Content Officer at the Augustine Institute. Thank you for joining. Today we're going to dive into the life of Saint Polycarp. Ben, tell us, what do we need to know about Saint Polycarp?

[Dr. Ben Akers]

There is wonderful things to know about Saint Polycarp. He first and foremost. It's not a name that you hear often. No, not a lot of little boys running around Saint Polycarp, but he's one of the great heroes of the early Church. He is a give you his dates. We celebrate his feast day, February 23rd. So if you want to mark your calendars, February 23rd is his feast day. It's actually the day that he dies. And we have. We have words of Saint Polycarp. We have the account of his martyrdom. We have letters that he received from a saint. So he is an incredible gift that we have to the church. So he's a bridge between the apostles, the Apostolic age, and then kind of the second century. So he was born around 70 A.D. and then is martyred 155, 156 A.D.

[Mary McGeehan]

Okay, so you would call. Could you call him an Apostolic Father? Would that be a proper title?

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Yeah. That's great. And by Apostolic Father. Yeah, exactly. These are the men that knew the apostles. So he knew an apostle. Do you remember which one?

[Mary McGeehan]

From St. John.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Great, good. Yes. So Mary is a proud graduate. We're very proud of her as a graduate of the Augustine Institute. And. Yes, that's right. He studied under. He knew John the Apostle, the beloved disciple who laid his head on the heart of Christ.

[Mary McGeehan]

I just think that's mind blowing, though, to be 2 degrees away from Jesus, you know, to be discipled by the man who's reclined his head on Jesus chest. That's incredible.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

I know. Exactly. So he would have known. Think of the stories that he knew about Christ that we don't have recounted in the Gospels for us. Yeah, right. Cause John says, I can't write it all down because it would fill all the books of the world. And so he knew stories about Jesus that we don't know.

[Mary McGeehan]

Okay. But fun question. If you were Polycarp, what would you ask St. John?

[Dr. Ben Akers]

If I was Saint Polycarp, what would I ask John?

[Mary McGeehan]

Yep. About Jesus. About the early Christian fathers, the apostles.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Yeah, that's a good question. Yeah, I would probably say what was. Tell me a story about Jesus that you haven't told me before. Yeah, that's what I actually like to do when I meet like for example, the Missionaries of Charity. The Missionaries of Charity, most of them living now would have met Mother Teresa and tell me a story about Mother Teresa. Oh, I remember. And they immediately tell me a story about Mother Angelica. If you meet one of the mother. The EWTN brothers. So these people that are in our living memory, holy men and women. And to get stories that you don't always get to see written down or hear told.

[Mary McGeehan]

No, I agree. I appreciate these first second century saints just for the humanity too, that they remind us of Jesus and the apostles as well.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Yeah. So I mean it was amazing to think that he knew the apostles. He at least the apostle John, he was taught by the apostle. Not just like, hey, that's John over there, but he actually was taught by John, mentored by John. He was a disciple of John and He's friends with St. Ignatius of Antioch. We have a foreign Catholic saints on him as well. And he was appointed by John, an apostle, to be a bishop of the church of Smyrna.

[Mary McGeehan]

Okay.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

So he was very in with John.

[Mary McGeehan]

In particular that inner crowd. Interesting. And where is Smyrna?

[Dr. Ben Akers]

It's in Asia Minor. Okay, so kind of where? Turkey. If you're thinking of modern map now.

[Mary McGeehan]

Turkey. Thank you. So when I think of Saint Polycarp, I think of his martyrdom is what comes to mind first. But before his martyrdom, was there anything he was known for? What were the obstacles of his time when he was bishop?

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Yes, so he had a couple obstacles that he faced. You know, just living as a Christian in the world is difficult today as it was in the second century. And a couple of things come to mind is the Gnostic heresies. So Gnostic heresies, we have a trend of those in the early church. Sometimes we even have them with us today. This kind of secret knowledge. We have something that's not accounted for in the gospels or in tradition, you know, come to us to find out. So in particular, Marcion and Valentine are the kind of the Gnostics that he is facing. And the way that he combated them was no, I actually heard from John who heard from Jesus. This is the teaching. And so he would just go over and over again. And we have an account of from Irenaeus who so he disciples, St. Irenaeus, another great early church Father Polycarp disciples. Thank you. Yes. Polycarp. So John Polycarp. Irenaeus.

[Mary McGeehan]

Okay. That's a cool discipleship chain.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Is that neat? Yeah. And then Polycarp and Ignatius are friends. They're both discipled by John.

[Mary McGeehan]

Okay.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Yeah.

[Mary McGeehan]

And both. Both are martyred. Ignatius was also.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Ignatius is martyred. Yeah. Ignatius actually has these incredible seven letters that he writes to the churches as he's going to Rome to be martyred. He's martyred in Rome. And one of the Church, actually, one of his seven letters is a letter to Polycarp as a friend.

[Mary McGeehan]

Oh, wow.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

It's like saying, keep the faith.

[Mary McGeehan]

Yeah. Encouragement.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Encouragement.

[Mary McGeehan]

Bishop to bishop.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Bishop to bishop. Yeah.

[Mary McGeehan]

Would you say if you were a bishop in these early first centuries after Jesus, death. It was basically a sentence to death. If you held any hierarchy in the.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Church, I think that early. Yeah. So for every Christian, not only is the bishop and the Pope, like, even the Christians, you know, when Jesus says, if you will be my disciple, you must take up your cross daily. And Luke, it says daily and follow me. The cross is an instrument of execution. The cross is the instrument by which people die. So just by being a follower, a student of Jesus, you know that this is a possible consequence.

[Mary McGeehan]

Wow.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Is to die. But definitely bishops serving as a head. You know, you strike the head of the snake, you know, the kind of. It keeps. You know, that's how you kill it. That's the idea in a lot of the practices in the early Church's persecution is strike the head. The bishop and the Church they imagine would scatter, but it actually keeps growing.

[Mary McGeehan]

Yeah.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

As Tertullian says, the. The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church.

[Mary McGeehan]

Amen. Yeah.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

So another. If I say another thing, what he's known for before his martyrdom, Polycarp is actually represented. Represents the other bishops that are in Asia Minor. And he's sent to Rome to the Pope. So it's interesting. This is so theology in the early church is that you have a bishop in Asia going to Rome to ask a question, a theological liturgical question. So it's not the bishop of Rome going to other churches to find out answers. So it already kind of. Even in the early. So this is second century, mid second century. We have bishops from other countries, other parts of the world coming to Rome to ask questions. The question at hand is, in Asia, they are celebrating Passover. Sorry, they're celebrating Easter, the resurrection of Christ on the 14th day of Nisan.

[Mary McGeehan]

What's Nisan?

[Dr. Ben Akers]

So the month of which Jesus celebrates the Passover. So it's a Jewish feast day. So it's called the Quattro Decima. So if you're in Catholic trivia, Catra de Sama, the 14th day controversy. So the Eastern church says, hey, we got this. We have this tradition from John and the Apostles. So this is when we celebrate Easter. But in Rome, they celebrate Easter on Sunday, right? On the Sabbath. Yeah. So on this. So Sabbath becomes transferred to Sunday. So they always celebrate, you know, after the first full moon, after the first vernal equinox. And I was kind of that. So. And they claim the church in Rome, Latin Church, claims that this feast day, so the Easter celebrated on a Sunday comes from apostolic origin as well, Peter.

[Mary McGeehan]

Interesting.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

So you have both churches claiming is that the 14th day of Nisan. So no matter what day, so you celebrate Easter on Tuesday, if it falls on Tuesday, because it's the 14th day of Nisan, or is it the Easter Sunday?

[Mary McGeehan]

And how did they reconcile? They didn't.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Yeah. So. No, they didn't. So Polycarp goes and makes his claim. He says we claim apostle apostolic origin. The Pope at the time in Aecitus says, we also claim apostolic origin and they depart in peace.

[Mary McGeehan]

Okay.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

And so the idea is that they don't settle it. They don't. They said. Yep, you keep practicing. We'll keep practicing. It will be celebrated by Pope Victor, solved by Pope Victor in 190 AD. So within 40 something years, the church settles on the Sunday salvation. But it's kind of an interesting thing. Then soon after, he goes back to his church and he's arrested Polycarpes and put on trial.

[Mary McGeehan]

Okay. And it also just points to the priority of the See of Rome as well from the early Church for their evidence for the seat of St. Peter in Rome. Thank you. Interesting. Well, I appreciate Polycarp for safeguarding the church from these heresies. You were mentioning Gnosticism. Was there another one of that time period? I kind of cut you off earlier.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

No, no, it was just the question about whether or not when Easter should.

[Mary McGeehan]

Be celebrated in the Easter egg. Okay, very good. Well, I. I heard he had told. Is it Marcion that he is the first son of Satan. Yeah. In quick suppression of his teachings as being not true. Not the. The faith of. From Jesus.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

No, these, these. That's right. And so we have. These are harsh words. And they were like, oh, how could he say that? You know, like this is how serious doctrine is. Right. Doctrine is not just a mind game that we do of like debating about does this letter or this word to Describe Christ? No, this is using words to describe the reality of who God is, and God revealed himself. And Marcion is distorting that in a heresy. So heresy is to take some teaching of the Church and to distort it in an incorrect way. And what Polycarp is so strong in his words, because he's like, this is serious. Lives depend on it. As the Catechism of the Catholic Church says that doctrines are lights along the path of our Christian life. If it's dark outside and it's definitely dark in the world in which we live, we need doctrines to light our path. And so if you skew the doctrine and say, oh, it's not a big deal, you go off the path and that leads to death, spiritual death. And so this is why this strong. Yes, I recognize you. You're a firstborn of Satan.

[Mary McGeehan]

Yeah. No, I think that helps me appreciate doctrine truly, as more of a gift from the Church. And even when we say the Apostles Creed at Mass, like how much battle, how much discuss much wars, you know, were fought, to be able to uphold those doctrines of our church and truly see them as a gift preserved from these Apostolic Fathers so passionate about the teachings of Christ.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Yeah. Well, I. I opened up my Bible. Tell me my. Because I think it's interesting because many biblical scholars, scripture scholars, will think that Polycarp's referred to or addressed by Christ in John the Apostle in the Book of Revelation. So we know that Polycarp is a disciple of John, that John handpicks Polycarp to be the bishop of Smyrna. And in the Book of Revelation, written by John. Written by John. In the Letter to the Churches, there's seven churches that Christ addresses in the Book of Revelation. In chapter two, starting in verse eight, there's a message to the Church of Smyrna.

[Mary McGeehan]

Wow.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Yeah. So this is probably Polycarp's message that he's receiving from John.

[Mary McGeehan]

Wow.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

And it begins to the angel of the Church in Smyrna. Right. So angel just is the word for messenger. So the messenger is the bishop. The words of the first and last who died and came to life. And he goes through some recommendation or some, you know, recognition and then a challenge. I know your tribulation, your poverty, you are rich. The slander of those who say that they are Jews and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan. So it sounds like a Marcion, the firstborn of Satan. It also sounds like when we get to the martyrdom of Polycarp, he's not only killed by the Gentiles, So the non Christians, but he's also the Jews. Contribute to the crowd. Yeah. So it seems to be an echo here. Do not fear what you're about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison that you may be tested for 10 days. You will have tribulation. Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life. He who has an ear, let him hear. The Spirit says to the churches, the one who conquers will not hurt by the second death.

[Mary McGeehan]

Wow.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

So this challenge of, hey, in the Church of Smyrna, you're going to have a persecution, but persevere, be faithful, and you'll receive the crown of life.

[Mary McGeehan]

Wow.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Very true. Yeah, we see that in the life of Polycarp.

[Mary McGeehan]

Yes. Wow. I had no clue that that was referenced in Revelation.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Isn't that interesting?

[Mary McGeehan]

Yeah.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Yes. So lots of fun things in the Bible. Another thing that we see before we get to his martyrdom is we have a letter from Ignatius of Antioch. We talked about him to Polycarp, and it's a beautiful letter of friendship where he's encouraging him to, hey, can you check in on my church of Antioch? I trust you. You're a man of God. We both know John. We both know the Lord. Deeply persist in unity. We also have a letter of Polycarp to the church in Philippians. That's right, the Philippians.

[Mary McGeehan]

I read it yesterday.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Yeah, isn't it great? I read these last night too, when I was at the letter. What was your impression of the letter?

[Mary McGeehan]

My favorite part was when he mentioned St. Paul. Actually. It just seemed very practical and trying to encourage the lay Christian to live their life virtuously, moment by moment. And I just remember a sense of humility at the beginning where he said, I have no authority to be writing to you, unlike St. Paul or I have no clout, but because you ask me, I will write a letter to you. Just that level of humility that he started off his letter with. Stuck out to me.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Yeah, exactly. What struck me at the very beginning of the letter when he says that humility, greetings. It sounds like a Pauline epistle. He's writing to a church that Paul would have wrote a letter to. When you're welcomed these copies of the True Love, you took the opportunity of setting them forward on the road. It made me happy in Jesus Christ. You did so. And I was like, copies of the True Love. He's referring to Ignatius and his companions who are on their way to martyrdom.

[Mary McGeehan]

Oh, wow.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

So Polycarp in humanity. Saying it moved me to see how you welcomed those martyrs on the way to their death. But I love that phrase, copies of true love. They were imitators. We're all the image and likeness of God, but in a particular way, they're the image in Christ and they're going to image him in their death.

[Mary McGeehan]

Yeah. No, that is beautiful. Whether we're called Smarterdom or not, that gift of self is something we, in carrying our cross is that copy of Love we all are called and invited into.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

That's right. So when you read the letter, it's very short. I encourage you. You can find these letters. We both have the same copy of Penguin Classic. Early Christian Writings was a compilation of these early church writers. But newadvent.org has all these fathers of the Church writing free. You can look that. It's a great website that I encourage you to. If you want to read these.

[Mary McGeehan]

And one more quick question before we dive into the martyrdom. I just find the letters as the form of preservation about the life of these saints, very fascinating. Why were letters the main mode of communication? The main mode of preserving the doctrine, the teachings? Yeah. Could you shed some insight on why were the letters. So how are they safeguarded as well in this time period?

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Well, they didn't have cell phones. No. Right. It's the way that they communicated. And, you know, like, this is a special message, just like, you know, Inspired Epistles of St. Paul, the Letters of St. Paul, you're writing to the Church and they recognize, this is gold, this is good. I want to keep this and preserve it. And they did their best to preserve it. You know, we do know that, Clement. So we do know that Polycarp wrote other letters. Some of the early church writers wrote other letters, but we don't have. They were destroyed. So in persecution, that would be. Part of the goal would be to destroy some of these letters. But they were so revered in their own lifetime as holy men and women that they kept these. They copied them as quickly as they could. And that's actually the reason why Polycarp writes to the Philippians, is they've requested something from him. They requested the letters of Ignatius that he had copies of. Said, can you send us copies of these and can you just give us a word of encouragement? And so that's why he goes to that teaching of, yeah, tradition's important. I heard it from John. John heard it from Jesus. I'm handing it on to be faithful to this. Jesus is both God and man. So he's going to be very firm on that as well. You need to pray for your friends, but you also need to pray for your enemies. You will die, you will be judged, but you will get your bodies back because the resurrection is real. Do you see how it sounds like the Apostles Creed? It's very clear. Like these are foundations of the faith that you need to hold to.

[Mary McGeehan]

Wow. Beautiful. Thank you.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Yeah.

[Mary McGeehan]

What is significant about Polycarp's martyrdom?

[Dr. Ben Akers]

So one of the biggest significances, the most significant thing about his death is that the first martyrs account that we have outside of St Stephen's account in Acts of the Apostles.

[Mary McGeehan]

Okay. So very ancient.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Yes. So this is amazing. We think of the early church martyrs, but they actually have a written account of someone who was there and describes a voice coming from the heavens. We have what Polycarp was asked on trial and what he says in response to that. We have his last prayer before he passes away. We have an eyewitness to kind of what happens when he's actually killed and what happens to his body and his bones. So we actually have so many details about his death. What's fascinating is that St. Stephen in Acts of the Apostles, he's the first account that we have of a martyr. He's the first martyr out after Christ's death and resurrection. And his is known for being pattern on. Christ looks up to heaven. He forgives them. They don't know what they do. Father, forgive them. He sounds like Christ. It looks like Christ. Polycarp's martyrdom, if you notice that it looks a lot like Christ. It's very, very much patterned on Christ's martyrdom. Christ's death.

[Mary McGeehan]

Okay.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Yeah. So that's one of the themes. As you go through the short. Again, short letter. I encourage you to read it.

[Mary McGeehan]

Yeah. And the Christocentric imitation is beautiful. What specifically was similar to Christ's death and Polycarp's?

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Yeah. If I could for a moment. One of the things about just martyrdom in general is, and it's the very beginning of the martyrdom account is the author goes through people who have been martyred and people who were potential to be martyred but chickened out. But I love it. He says that some of these martyrs look as if they don't suffer at all. And he says it's as if Christ is standing next to them and talking to them as a friend.

[Mary McGeehan]

Wow. Like with them.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

With them in the moment of death. And he says the cost of a single hour purchase for themselves, life everlasting. So he made light of this world. So, like an hour of suffering is nothing Compared to eternity. I just love that exhortation to begin that you imagine you die and then you close your eyes in death, you open them, you see God forever face to face.

[Mary McGeehan]

Yes.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Everything changes.

[Mary McGeehan]

Wow.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

And so is that hour not enough to suffer? And we could say that we're probably not going to be called to martyrdom in our own life of a blood martyrdom, but daily sacrifices, 70, 80 years of making sacrifices and fasting, praying, almsgiving. Is that not worth eternity?

[Mary McGeehan]

Yes.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

To do.

[Mary McGeehan]

Yes. That greater perspective is often forgotten.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Well, one of the things that he gives two examples, and this is helpful for us, is he gives example of Germanicus, who is one of the early martyrs. So this is before we get to Polycarp, but in the martyrdom of Polycarp. And he's so intense. He just. He pulls the beast upon himself. He's like, yeah, bring it on. Yeah. Like this kind of. Yeah. This incredible intensity of his desire.

[Mary McGeehan]

I don't think I would do that.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

I know. Well, it's interesting because you're like, well, like, is that normal? Is that okay? And he's just so convinced that this is. He's already gonna die. He's being killed, he's being eaten by the lion, you know, the animals. He's like, just bring it. Like, bring my reward even more quickly. But he also gives, in the very next paragraph, the example of Quintus, who volunteered, I'll be a martyr, and then chickened out and ran away.

[Mary McGeehan]

Wow.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

And there's a commentary in the text that says, and that is the reason, brothers, that while we do not approve of men offering themselves spontaneously, we are not taught anything of that in the Gospel. So we have this early Christian writing saying, look, we're not taught to go and seek martyrdom. If it comes, say yes, but don't go out of your way to go and seek martyrdom. And that's just good. He's like, it's not even in the Gospels, because you don't know you're going to get the grace to do it. If you're asked to do it by the Lord, he'll give you the grace, right?

[Mary McGeehan]

Yes.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Because don't presume on the grace that you're going to get it.

[Mary McGeehan]

It's clear with these depictions, they're there with Jesus very closely in this martyrdom. You don't throw yourself in the ring without Jesus to overcome this.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Right. So some of the things when you read the story, and I encourage you to read it, and is, you know, he's praying, he's. He's betrayed by someone in his own household. The guy's name was Herod. The author makes sure, like, remember Herod from the New Testament? That was the enemy. Yeah, this guy's an enemy. They come on to him on a Friday. They. The guards come to him with weapons. Sounds like Christ. In the agony in the garden, he says, Polycarp says God's word will be done. He's so old, he's so saintly. He asked to pray. So we think of John 17, that. That high priestly prayer of Christ. The author of this text says he prayed at length. It took two hours. He prayed for everyone whom chance had brought him in contact with. Small, great, known and unknown, as well as the entire worldwide Catholic Church. Prays for everybody.

[Mary McGeehan]

Wow.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Anyone he had ever met, great or small, he thinks of all before he dies. Just as Christ on the cross, you know, remembers every single one of us, keeps us in mind. He. They put him on a donkey, like Christ rides a donkey. They took him into the city. He's put on trial by Herod and their father. So you think of Annas and Caiaphas, the father, the Father in law, he's examined. He's, you know, he's. He's put on trial, he's found guilty. They. They nail him to the wood and then he expires. And this, you know, the dove, the form of the dove comes out like the spirit comes out. So there's lots of parallels in the text that the author notes between Polycarp's death and Christ's death.

[Mary McGeehan]

Thank you. That is beautiful. And then I remember there's a Eucharistic theme as well, towards the end, was he was. For some reason, they weren't going to put the beast on him. So instead they decided to light him on fire. But the fire couldn't touch them or touch him.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

That's right.

[Mary McGeehan]

And then how did. Where's Lycras?

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Yeah, no, so that's great. So I just think it's such a great story because he's. They tie him to the tree. They tie him. They were going to nail him, and they tie him to the stake instead. Bound with that, with his hands behind him, he was like a noble ram taken out of some great flock for sacrifice. A goodly burnt offering, all ready for God. Then he cast his eyes up to heaven and said. And he has this beautiful prayer. It sounds like the Roman canon. It sounds like the Eucharistic prayer at Mass. So how many Sundays has he. How many days that he celebrated the Mass, the liturgy, and Said these words over and over again. But, but the author wants us to show that he himself is the sacrifice. So he's the burnt offering, he's the ram and he has this beautiful prayer of, you know, he offers himself and his anointing is long. I encourage you to read it. He says, I glorify you, the eternal high Priest in heaven, the beloved Son, Jesus Christ, through the Holy Spirit now to the ages of ages. Amen. And then as you said, the kind of fire is forming an arc over him like a ship sailing. And he looked not like a there was in the center of it, not like a human being in flames, but like a loaf baking in the oven. Okay, so Ignatius of Antioch said, I want, when, you know, when it's his friend, when I die, I want them to be ground in the teeth of the beast so I could turn into the wheat of God. Some very eucharistic images here. It's like he's baking in an oven.

[Mary McGeehan]

Wow.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

And he's the bread that's being offered. So just as bread is transformed by his hands into Christ, or was, so his life is being transformed into an imitation of Christ's offering and sacrifice.

[Mary McGeehan]

Yep, very eucharistic.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Very eucharistic. Yep.

[Mary McGeehan]

And very practical for us as well in our day today. Not that we're going to be burned at the stake, I hope not. But like you were saying, how can we give of ourselves every day, you know, in those moment to moment sacrifices.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

One of the most moving passages for me is how simply he shows up in the arena and a voice comes from heaven to him. Be strong, Polycarp, play the man, be a man. And then he's put on trial. He's in the trial and the governor says just a little oath, not a big deal, just, you know, just sacrifice to the pagan gods. Not a big deal. And one of my favorite lines of all of like early Christian writing, Polycarp's reply was 8 and 6 years. So 86 years have I served him and he has done me no wrong. How then can I blaspheme my king and my savior? Wow, 86 years. He's only been done good. Yeah. Faithfulness to me. How can I at this moment be unfaithful to him?

[Mary McGeehan]

That is beautiful.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

And so 86 year old man, you know, when he's trying to untie, he's trying to put his slippers on even though his sandals, he's too weak to do that. So think of an 86 year old man that's old even by today's standards. And he gives this beautiful witness of strength and vitality and courage in his martyrdom.

[Mary McGeehan]

That is beautiful. Thank you. My last favorite detail about his martyrdom is at the very beginning, actually, where his captors come to him and he gives them food and drink, and he is hospitable to the men who are about to bring to his death. So that was really striking to me as we just look at the lives of the Apostolic Fathers. We are in that apostolic time today of what can we learn from these men and women that we can apply to our lives today as well?

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Yeah, I think the thing that we can learn is faithfulness to God will be honored. And God honors that. And it's a witness today. We are. This is 155156 A.D. we in the years 2000s, you know, the decade we're in now, we're still remembering this story. And one of the last lines of the letter is like, Share this letter, share the story of Polycarp. Share the story of the martyrs. So you can learn from the people that lived and followed in the footsteps of Christ. And so I think that's if we allow Christ to be king of our lives, we don't know the age in which we live. There's a saying that's ascribed to St. Thomas More. The times are never so bad that a good man or woman can't live in them. That no matter what challenges we face. He was facing persecution. It was illegal to be a Christian. They were hunting Christians down. And they not only had that, they had challenges of teachings within the Church that were unclear and bishops that contradicted bishops. And it was confusing. And he says, be faithful to the words of Christ. I know Christ. I know John, who knew Christ personally. And I know Christ personally in my own life. If you're faithful to him, he'll be faithful to you. He'll be your sure guide in life. And so that's, I think, one of the lessons we can learn from the martyrs.

[Mary McGeehan]

Be faithful to the words of Christ. Thank you. Anything else you'd like to share about Saint Polycarp?

[Dr. Ben Akers]

No, I read it. So Polycarp's name. I know it's not a name that we often hear. We don't name our kids this. It means much fruit. So it's very Christian name because Christ says, you are my disciple if you bear much fruit. So you're my disciple if you're Polycarp.

[Mary McGeehan]

I love it.

[Dr. Ben Akers]

Yeah.

[Mary McGeehan]

Very, very beautiful. And the fruit he did bear as a martyr for the Church. Yes, we were so grateful. Well, Saint Polycarp, we ask for your intercession. Saint Polycarp, pray for us. Pray for us. Thanks for watching. You can watch these interviews in video format by visiting formed.org formed is an online Catholic streaming service created by the Augustine Institute and Ignatius Press with award winning studies and parish programs, inspiring audio content, movies, ebooks and family friendly kids programming to support the mission of the Augustan institute. Please visit missioncircle.org.